“Who even asked us to come here?” begins Nimesh Patel in a now-viral Instagram clip that has Indian Americans nodding, laughing, and reminiscing all at once. The comedian, best known for being the first Indian American writer on Saturday Night Live, delivers a history lesson disguised as a punchline. According to him, Indians didn’t just "show up" in the 70s and 80s, as many assume. No, we’ve been around for over a century—since the 1800s to be precise.
And why did we land in the U.S. back then? Well, Patel quips, “We were looking for Christopher Columbus. We heard he was looking for us.” A clever turnaround of colonial lore that perfectly sets the tone for what follows—a comic retelling of desi migration that’s both sharp and satisfyingly absurd.
Bhagat Singh Thind and the White-ish Dilemma
Patel moves into his next bit with the flair of a Netflix docu-series: enter Bhagat Singh Thind, a real-life Punjabi immigrant who fought in World War I and then fought again—for U.S. citizenship. The case actually reached the Supreme Court in 1923, with the country’s top judges faced with the existential question: “Is this brown guy white?”
Spoiler alert: they said no. Thind lost, and the few thousand Indians in America at the time were shown the door. “Nope. Go back to India,” Patel deadpans. A moment of legal history retold as if it were a sitcom punchline—only, this one had real consequences.
The Great Indian Comeback
The story then skips ahead to 1965, when the Asian Exclusion Act was lifted and the U.S. immigration gates creaked open again. According to Patel, those decades back in India weren’t spent sulking. “We were studying. Preparing for our eventual return.” If Americans were going to love three things—food, sleep, and driving—then Indians were going to be ready to deliver: “Gas, meds, and beds, baby. That’s how we did it.”
The phrase has since become a fan favorite, echoing across Instagram comments. It captures the desi hustle in three words—running motels, pharmacies, and medical clinics. A cultural strategy so successful it almost sounds like a marketing slogan.
From Parsippany to Prime Time
Patel, who hails from Parsippany, New Jersey, has seen this story up close. His own parents arrived in the 70s, with his father starting off as a Macy’s cashier before opening a liquor store in a tough Newark neighborhood. Shot at, robbed, and still standing—if that's not the immigrant experience in a nutshell, what is?
Originally a pre-med student at NYU, Patel ended up graduating in finance. But fate (and funny bones) had other plans. He’s now one of the most recognizable Indian American comedians, straddling immigrant identity and American absurdity with ease.
A History Lesson Worth Laughing Through
The comment section on his post turned into a digital reunion of sorts. One viewer called the set “intelligent comedy,” another referenced fusion families of early Punjabi-Mexican unions, and a third compared it all to Avatar: The Last Airbender. Because yes, if anyone can master the elements of American life—fuel, pharmaceuticals, and affordable overnight stays—it’s the Indian diaspora.
What Patel delivers is more than just laughs. It's a retelling of overlooked stories through the accessible (and arguably more effective) lens of comedy. A reminder that even if Indians weren’t considered “white” enough in 1923, by 2025, they are buying homes in bulk and laughing all the way to the cardiology clinic.
And why did we land in the U.S. back then? Well, Patel quips, “We were looking for Christopher Columbus. We heard he was looking for us.” A clever turnaround of colonial lore that perfectly sets the tone for what follows—a comic retelling of desi migration that’s both sharp and satisfyingly absurd.
Bhagat Singh Thind and the White-ish Dilemma
Patel moves into his next bit with the flair of a Netflix docu-series: enter Bhagat Singh Thind, a real-life Punjabi immigrant who fought in World War I and then fought again—for U.S. citizenship. The case actually reached the Supreme Court in 1923, with the country’s top judges faced with the existential question: “Is this brown guy white?”
Spoiler alert: they said no. Thind lost, and the few thousand Indians in America at the time were shown the door. “Nope. Go back to India,” Patel deadpans. A moment of legal history retold as if it were a sitcom punchline—only, this one had real consequences.
The Great Indian Comeback
The story then skips ahead to 1965, when the Asian Exclusion Act was lifted and the U.S. immigration gates creaked open again. According to Patel, those decades back in India weren’t spent sulking. “We were studying. Preparing for our eventual return.” If Americans were going to love three things—food, sleep, and driving—then Indians were going to be ready to deliver: “Gas, meds, and beds, baby. That’s how we did it.”
The phrase has since become a fan favorite, echoing across Instagram comments. It captures the desi hustle in three words—running motels, pharmacies, and medical clinics. A cultural strategy so successful it almost sounds like a marketing slogan.
From Parsippany to Prime Time
Patel, who hails from Parsippany, New Jersey, has seen this story up close. His own parents arrived in the 70s, with his father starting off as a Macy’s cashier before opening a liquor store in a tough Newark neighborhood. Shot at, robbed, and still standing—if that's not the immigrant experience in a nutshell, what is?
Originally a pre-med student at NYU, Patel ended up graduating in finance. But fate (and funny bones) had other plans. He’s now one of the most recognizable Indian American comedians, straddling immigrant identity and American absurdity with ease.
A History Lesson Worth Laughing Through
The comment section on his post turned into a digital reunion of sorts. One viewer called the set “intelligent comedy,” another referenced fusion families of early Punjabi-Mexican unions, and a third compared it all to Avatar: The Last Airbender. Because yes, if anyone can master the elements of American life—fuel, pharmaceuticals, and affordable overnight stays—it’s the Indian diaspora.
What Patel delivers is more than just laughs. It's a retelling of overlooked stories through the accessible (and arguably more effective) lens of comedy. A reminder that even if Indians weren’t considered “white” enough in 1923, by 2025, they are buying homes in bulk and laughing all the way to the cardiology clinic.
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