Originally reported and written in June 2023, this story has been republished as part of our archival content.

In a palatial spot in Candolim, along the touristy beachy belt, there lies a house that seems untouched by time. The ‘Costa Frias House’ has essayed the role of a safe abode for Nirmala Costa Frias and her family who have been living here since she got married in 1969.

Speaking about the bygone days, Nirmala recounts them as magical times. “The sala [living room] and the dining room was the space where the family entertained guests, so these two rooms were elaborately decorated and embellished. Our house is probably the only house in Goa with the wash basin in the dining room made of pink marble, specially imported from Carrera in Italy.”

As she goes on about the memories the home has held through the years, her son Jose is hard at work these days, trying to put together the family tree. He says their tree is “unique” as it mentions the daughters’ names too, unlike others that focus mostly on male lineage.

While the Costa Frias family home has been witness to many generations of the family and their joys and sorrows, it is one of the many homes in Goa that has these legacy stories etched into its veins and cracks.

Heta Pandit’s book ‘Stories from Goan Houses’ is doing justice to bringing these stories to light. It shows the world that Goan homes transcend beyond being spots to point and marvel at while on a holiday, but rather they are time capsules that hold different worlds within their brightly painted facades.

At 69, Heta who........

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