The clash of cultures is a tale as old as time. Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti’s adaptation of Sathnam Sanghera’s novel, itself a take on Arnold Bennett’s 1908 “The Old Wives’ Tale”, focuses on the conflict between tradition and change within a Sikh Punjabi family in the 1960s and over the following decades. Family and cultural expectations demand that sisters Kamaljit and Surinder marry, have children, and work in the family business, the corner shop that forms the centrepiece of the story. Their mother juggles the demands of the family, managing the shop after her husband falls ill while fending off suggestions from “Uncle” Dhandra, a more successful shop-owner, that she sell the shop to him. She’s a firm, sometimes even cruel matriarch, determined like her sick husband to make a better life for her family. Elder daughter Kamaljit is content to follow tradition, but academically gifted Surinder sees a different future for herself, her teenage dreams and aspirations bringing her into conflict with her family. The path for neither sister proves to be smooth. Kamaljit eventually becomes like her mother, with a similar sharpness to her character and prematurely aged from the hard work she has had to put in running the shop. Surinder’s fate takes a very different turn as she adopts a less traditional way of life, causing great family upset.
Told with wit and a great deal of heart, the subject of a changing society and a culture that is slowly adapting to a more modern way of life, is obviously a serious one. Bhatti doesn’t duck the impact of racism, or that even a well-educated family member can also adopt racist ideas when he dates a white woman. Their experience of racism, immigration and integration is part of the story, but not the central feature, as they ensure that their culture remains at their core. Alongside the seriousness, the piece has a good deal of laugh-out-loud humour with some well-timed lines and a delightful comedic sense. It’s not always easy for a non-Punjabi speaker to get all the references especially with some quick-fire exchanges, but the glossary at the back of programme helps as does the context of the scenes.
Several of the cast perform different characters which they accomplish so perfectly that it’s only from reading the programme that this becomes clear. This ensemble of performers are extremely talented, presenting thoroughly credible characters and relationships that are a joy to watch.
The set by theatre design studio, “Good Teeth”, is a well-thought-out kinetic structure that transforms from traditional corner shop, to home interior, to exterior street scene in Wolverhampton. The cast do most of the scene shifting which maintains Iqbal Khan’s well-paced direction.
The story ends on a hopeful and uplifting note of reconciliation within and between communities, and with a message about the pull and importance of family and how ties pull people back to their roots. In the words of a different show, it’s the circle of life, told through the experience of an immigrant family seeking to make a good life for themselves and their children.
Marriage Material plays at the Lyric Hammersmith until 21st June. Tickets are on sale at: https://lyric.co.uk/
Reviewer: Carole Gordon
Reviewed: 28th May 2025
North West End UK Rating: