I was bored before I even began

About half of the nation's 50,000 motels are owned or controlled by immigrants who trace their origin to the state of Gujarat in western India, many with the last name Patel.

But hundreds of those hotel and motel owners now are fighting foreclosure, while others have lost their properties to lenders, said Hemant Patel, chairman of the Asian American Hotel Owners Association. The Atlanta trade group represents nearly 10,000 immigrants of Gujarati descent in the U.S. with lodging properties valued at an estimated $130 billion.

Why hasn't this secret world of Gujarati motel owners surnamed Patel been the subject of a documentary film yet?

From Hotel Owner to the Hired Help

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