Jitendra Nath Seth passed away peacefully in his sleep on June 30, 2010 at the age of 70. Jitendra, known to his friends as Jiten or Jetti, was a well known businessman and real estate professional in the Northboro/Marlboro area.

Born in Hardoi, India in 1939, Jiten set his sights early to a career in Engineering. He was selected to study Textile Engineering in Germany and moved to Dusseldorf at the age of 21. Not speaking a word of German, Jiten assiduously taught himself the language, and was able to hand in his final thesis in German in fulfillment of a Bachelor’s degree.

He subsequently immigrated to the United States and worked with Honeywell as an industrial engineer in Boston. Though well established at work, Jiten’s entrepreneurial spirit prompted him to launch a career in Real Estate. Partnering with his first partner and mentor Mr. Mel Pechet, Jiten actively marketed and managed several condominium complexes in the Boston area.

Not being satisfied with just real estate, Jiten bought an established family style restaurant , Cardell’s in Cambridge. Later Jiten launched Ashoka, one of the first Indian restaurants in greater Boston, eventually branching out to three locations in Harvard Square, Cambridge and historic Quincy Market in Boston. For the inauguration of his capstone location in Boston, he arranged for world renowned sitar virtuoso, Pandit Ravi Shankar and tabla exponent Pandit Alla Rakha to perform.

With a growing family, Jiten moved the focus of his operations from Boston to the suburbs, relocating to Northboro in 1987 and launching yet another venue, American Lobster, a uniquely New England themed restaurant in Marlboro. The restaurant attracted a clientele from far and wide with its Lobster specials.

In the mid 1990’s, Jiten undertook yet another endeavor, this time partnering with John Benedetti, who went on to become his close friend and associate, focusing on commercial and residential development. Together they were instrumental in building the first four locations for the Goddard School Childcare franchise in Massachusetts; multiple residential sub-divisions and numerous custom projects.  His latest project was an innovative proposal to establish a Biotechnology park in North Andover to unlock the potential for thousands of jobs.

He is survived by his wife Ragini; his sons, Rajit Seth, and his wife Bhumika, Sonit Seth, and his wife Nimisha; grandson Sanjul Seth; and his mother-in-law, Rani Nautiyal. A memorial service will be held at 4.30 pm on Sunday July 11, 2010 at the ISW India Center, 152 West Main St., Shrewsbury, MA 01545. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Seth Scholarship fund at the India Society of Worcester, PO Box 945, Worcester, MA 01613 http://memorialwebsites.legacy.com/JitendraSeth

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