Unlike many Indian classical musicians Ashish Narayan Tripathi did not make contact with the world of music until the age of 16. He was born and brought up in the small town of Mainpuri, UP where opportunity to study music were very limited. However his thirst for music led him to his first guru, Dr. Manjari Mishra and his musical journey thus began. But the fish from the pond was now looking to swim in bigger waters. This search led him to the holy city of Vrindavan where he was blessed with the guidance of the Dhrupad legend Pandit Bidur Malik. Although interested in Khayal gayaki right from the beginning, he credits his training in Dhrupad style for the deep resonant voice that is the trademark of his singing today. This chapter in his life lasted for a couple of years which resulted in creating a very strong foundation for what was to come next.