Nisha da Cunha (1934-2026): An inspirational teacher and writer of things usually left unsaid

Some people come to us to definitively shape who we later become. Call it providence, fate, destiny, chance or sheer good luck, but Professor Nisha da Cunha, who died on August 11, was one such provocateur in my life.

My recollections of her are perhaps common to every student of English Literature at St Xavier's College of the mid- and late 1970s – the commanding air, the measured diction while reading a text aloud in the classroom, trademark poise, impatience with students who "showed off" and her passionate guidance of those she believed had potential.

It is not an exaggeration to say that we not only wanted to be as bright as she was, we actually wanted to be her, down to her short hair, piercing gaze, woven saree and large red bindi. She was simply cool. (A few years later at my first job, I mimicked an elegant "handloom" saree look. For the admiration expressed by my German bosses, the credit goes to Nisha da Cunha.)

In her lifetime, Da Cunha wore many caps, all of them distinguished and successful: scholar, teacher, writer and theatre director. Born in 1934 into a prominent, highly cultured family, she spent part of her childhood in Germany during the Second World...

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