Prof. Asoka de Zoysa received his academic training at the Institut für Indische Philologie und Kunstgeschichte in Berlin, where he specialized in Sanskrit, Pali, and hybrid-Hindi texts, as well as the artistic traditions of India and the Himalayan region. His doctoral dissertation, Blutrünstige Brahminen am heiligen Strome (Frankfurt, 1997), offers a groundbreaking analysis of how India was portrayed in 18th- and 19th-century German, French, and English opera and theatre.
Following his MA in Indology and Germanistik, he joined the Educational Service at the Museum für Indische Kunst in Berlin, where he conducted guided tours, delivered lectures, and contributed to special exhibitions at the Museum of Indian Art.
Since 1997, Prof. de Zoysa has been a member of the faculty in the Department of Modern Languages, where he now serves as Professor in charge of German Studies and Director of the Samkathana Research Centre. His academic interests span gender perspectives in contemporary art, theatre, fashion, advertising, cinema, and literature. He has translated numerous German plays into Sinhala and English, several of which he has personally directed.
His current research focuses on Buddhist temple culture and Buddhist and Hindu iconography. He is also an active cultural commentator, writing regular reviews of performances and exhibitions for national newspapers.
Prof. de Zoysa serves as a visiting lecturer at the University of Visual and Performing Arts and as a consultant and lecturer at the Academy of Design, Colombo.