Marriage Material
Sathnam Sanghera’s 2013 novel, Marriage Material took its inspiration from Arnold Bennett’s classic, The Old Wives’ Tale, transposing the story of two sisters who work in their mother's draper’s shop to a Sikh family in Wolverhampton. In it, he introduced readers to Kamaljit and Surinder, the two teenage daughters of the Bains family – and in a parallel narrative set in the present day, Arjan, who has returned home to his mother (an older Kamaljit) after his father’s death. Now, it undergoes further evolution, as Sanghera’s book is reimagined for the theatre by Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti and directed by Iqbal Khan. But, as is often the case with adaptation, the move from page to stage proves a delicate balancing act – with flares of exquisite tension, as well as stretches that feel rushed and flat.
The fact is, squeezing down a 336-page novel into under three hours is a difficult task. First, there are the obvious issues of space and structure, and then the subtler challenge of translating the author’s tone into the dialogue and action. The strength of Kaur Bhatti’s writing is that Sanghera’s sharp wit comes through loud and clear. By merging Punjabi words with English dialogue, the script encapsulates the realities of a home for second generation children. At its best, it feels like a sitcom, dancing with spiky comedy unique to the family’s experience and place. Add to this a killer ensemble cast, led by Anoushka Deshmukh and Kiran Landa, who play the sisters with unwavering...