Eunice De Souza, Poet and Beloved Professor, Passes Away

A pioneer in English language poetry in India, she published four volumes of poetry and two novels.

Considered to be a pioneer in Indian English language poetry in India, she published four volumes of poetry, two novels and edited several anthologies of poems.

(Photo: Twitter/Khalid Mohammed)

Noted poet, professor, literary critic and novelist Eunice De Souza passed away at the age of 77 in her Mumbai residence on Saturday. Considered to be a pioneer in Indian English language poetry in India, she published four volumes of poetry, two novels and edited several anthologies of poems. As a professor of English and later, Head of Department at St. Xavier’s College in Mumbai, she was well-loved for her acerbic wit.

Her first collection of poetry Fix, was published in 1979, and her latest collection, Learn from the Almond Leaf was published in 2016. On news of her death, tributes poured in on Twitter from poets, writers and former students.

In her last volume, Learn from the Almond Leaf (2016) she writes,

Tell me Mr. Death
Date, Time, Place.
I have to look for my
Life-of-sin panties
Make an appointment
For a pedicure.

Eunice De Souza’s funeral is expected to take place at 3.30 pm at St Anthony Church, Vakola on August 2, a day after what would have been her 77th birthday.