SURAT: For 18 years, he took orders from people for piping hot bhajiyas that his father prepared on a small handcart outside Chikhli bus stop in Navsari. Now, he is all set to deliver orders.
Subhash Tripathi is awaiting his appointment as a civil judge. After practicing as a lawyer for five years in Chikhli court, Tripathi cleared the exam for judges recently.
The family migrated from Varanasi to Chikhli, around 55 km from Surat, half a century back and lives in a small rented house in Samroli village. His father Dinanath started selling bhajiyas outside the bus stop alongthe national highway in 1987 when Subhash was just six. The boy would help his father.
Those were tough days but the boy never gave up on studies. After scoring 83% in Class X, he wanted to become a doctor. But his father suffered a heart attack which only worsened the financial condition of the six-member family. "I would often work 12 hours, serving bhajiyas and cleaning the plates," he told TOI, reminiscing how the family survived on the Rs 150 earnings daily. "In Class XII, I scored just 55% and thought I might get admission in a pharmacy college. But due to family responsibilities and father's illness, I took up graduation in chemistry. However, I decided to pursue LLB along with science," Tripathi told TOI.
The judge-in-making still enjoys making green coconut patties, the family's specialty that sells like hot cakes in the town. "Very few people get an opportunity to serve food to people," he says with pride.
Meanwhile, Dinanath can't stop talking about his son at his Jalaram Farsan stop. "He has made us proud. I can't wait to see him sitting on the judge's chair," the emotional father tells his regulars. -TOI
