COLUMBUS, Ohio — If there’s one thing Vishal Patel knows, it’s that food brings people together.
“When people eat a different cuisine type, they get a little more curious about that cuisine or that culture. And as they learn more about it, they become a little bit more accepting,” said Patel.
He’s the owner of Curry Up Indian Grill on Sawmill Road near Martin Road, which is in northwest Columbus near Dublin.
Patel told 10TV, acceptance and understanding is what people should have for each other, but he hasn’t been given that.
Patel says he has received hundreds of threatening, disturbing and racist phone calls from blocked numbers.
He said this has happened to him for the last two years. Patel said he’s even received death threats.
“They’ve even said things like, 'We know the type of car you drive,' 'We’ll be waiting for you in the parking lot,' 'We’re going to come and shoot up the place,“ he said.
“I mean I wish I know their reasons behind it, sometimes there are just no reasons,” said Patel.
You may be wondering why after two years, he is saying something now?
Actually, Patel wasn’t the one who said anything at all. He told 10TV a customer overheard a threat one day and wrote about it on the website Reddit.
“He’s played some of the voice mails for me, it’s just kind of really shocking. There’s really no room for it,” said Michael Mulroy.
Mulroy did not write the post but he believes every word that was written. He works right beside Patel’s restaurant at Five Guys.
So the fact that Patel is speaking out, is admirable to him.
“I mean it’s incredibly brave. What he’s going through is worse than a normal business would, as a good worker it dehumanizes you a little,” said Mulroy.
Patel is not going to let this keep him from bringing people together with food. But he said for those who do this - to think.
“Just think about if it was your family. What would you do? How would you feel? You just don’t want them to continue to keep doing something like this you really want to change them and stop them from doing this in the long-run,” said Patel.
Patel said he had filed police reports with police. But he’s been told they cannot investigate the numbers because they are blocked.