The palatial Patel House would have been the shooting location if Bollywood filmmaker Karan Johar’s Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahaani had been filmed in the United States. Spread over 17 acres, the majestic residence – Surya Kiran Palace – is either a dream or envy of every Indian-origin billionaire. Home to three generations of an Indian American billionaire family, the Patel House is worth a visit (by invitation only) in the southeast US.
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Surya Kiran Palace is a most prized possession of Dr Kiran Patel and Dr Pallavi Patel who call Tampa their home in Florida. Their newly-built Carrollwood residence is, apparently, the largest in Hillsborough County. It took 10 years to be complete in 2023 following the ground-breaking ceremony in 2013. This is where the Patel couple hosted their golden marriage anniversary amid fun, feasts and fireworks 9 months ago.
With Mughal-style arches, towering columns, and pink-hued sandstone, the multimillion-dollar Patel House features traditional architecture (an eclectic mix of Indian, Persian and Italian styles) from outside. The grand interior is very much American and exudes contemporary elegance, from 22-ft floor to ceiling windows to the exclusive collection of handpicked artifacts for décor.
The residential part of the Patels’ 17-acre estate in Tampa Bay has two main wings over a total area of 63,000 square feet. Dr Kiran Patel resides in one wing with his wife Pallavi, and the other wing houses their son and his family. Each wing has a private entrance. They share the kitchen, the living area, the home theatre, and the indoor temple out of their adherence to the age-old Indian practice of keeping family members united.
Be it philanthropy or their personal space, the Patels are equally liberal with their wealth. The colossal entrance leading to the main hall faces a pool with fountains; a testimony to their king-size living. It is a square structure with shikharas and intricately designed arches on four sides, like the magnificent porch of mansions in the erstwhile Rajputana provinces of Gujarat and Rajasthan. Surprisingly, bigger than this is the outermost entrance built like a watchtower.
The central unit consists of a fully airconditioned, palatial edifice having 32,000-sqft space. The formal living area is as immensely spacious as over 15,000 square feet that can accommodate more than 500 guests at a time. What is more surprising is that the Patels’ Surya Estate in Tampa has a banquet hall sprawling 4,000 square feet and three guest houses. The residential area is meticulously landscaped with sprawling lawns, gardens, fountains, waterfalls, and an astounding 450m long swimming pool.
In Florida, the Patel House compound also has two small blocks, each having over 7500sqft space, where the Patels’ two physician daughters will gradually move in with their spouses. “I am very fortunate that all my three children decided to stay in Tampa, which is unusual in this day and age,” the Tampa Bay Times quoted Dr Patel saying in an article. There is dedicated space for yoga and meditation, and a beautiful lotus blossom made of glass draws attention to this relaxing space.
The compound, on the inner side, is lined with cypress trees which were planted celebrating Dr Kiran C Patel’s 65th birth anniversary. The 17-acre Surya Estate does also encompass a lake that adds to the serene ambience and scenic beauty of the palatial residence. If the richest Indian business family’s Antilia in Mumbai is a vertical wonder, the Indian-American pharma baron’s Surya Kiran Estate in Tampa is a marvel on ground.
Florida-based Dr Kiran Patel and Pallavi Patel are healthcare entrepreneurs with several philanthropic undertakings to their credit. In 2019, they made a whopping, nonprofit investment of $200 million to Nova Southeaster University for free medical education of meritorious students from India and other developing countries. Most recently, they inaugurated a new medical college of osteopathic medicine in Orlando, Florida, among their funded projects for the welfare of humankind.