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Mother Tongue

A colourful, decorative rug is positioned centre stage. “It lasted pretty well,” a disembodied voice comments through the speaker system, explaining how it was chosen for its pattern, which is ideal for concealing dirt. Later, a male performer emerges, respectfully removing his shoes before stepping onto the carpet with mindful, considered footsteps. His motions slowly morph into buttery pads and slides that look as if he’s walking a tightrope. What is he traversing? What is he navigating?

Performance

Hetain Patel’s “Mathroo Basha”

Place

The Pit, Barbican Centre, London, UK, October 12, 2024

Words

Emily May

Hetain Patel’s “Mathroo Basha.” Photograph by Foteini Christofilopoulou

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This is the opening of London-based artist Hetain Patel’s latest work, which he shared a preview of at this year’s edition of Dance Umbrella festival. Titled “Mathroo Basha,” which translates as “mother tongue,” the performance sets out to reflect on Patel’s experience of growing up in a Brit-Gujarati family, and “what is lost and what is transformed” through immigration, assimilation, and generational change. 

The evolution (or dissolution) of spoken language is the key change that Patel focuses on, basing his work around a series of interviews he conducted with his mother, aunt, cousin, and niece that are played throughout “Mathroo Basha.” Frequently slipping between English and Gujarati—strongly relatable for an bilingual who has experienced words from two languages floating around in their heads simultaneously—the interviewees discuss everything from their diminishing vocabulary and the inevitable dominance of English to the dissonance of not being able to read or write in their mother tongues. (Other cultural topics also arise, such as not knowing how to put on a sari and how letting go of certain parts of Gujarati culture—such as an unquestioning respect for elders—may be a good thing.) 

Each from different generations, Patel’s female relatives’ unique perspectives demonstrate how cultural identity and communication shift over time. Thoughts from his young niece, who wasn’t raised speaking Gujarati, are particularly bittersweet, as she eagerly asks Patel to teach her words and phrases she can use with her grandma. Her earnest annoyance that her ancestral tongue isn’t included on popular language learning app Duolingo also prompts empathetic chuckles in the audience.

Hetain Patel’s “Mathroo Basha.” Photograph by Foteini Christofilopoulou

Patel reacts physically to all of the interviews played, yet his movement plays second fiddle to “Mathroo Basha’s” set elements, which have been developed with greater attention to detail. For instance, the aforementioned rug, a replica of the artist’s grandmother’s carpet, was impressively tufted by Patel in his studio. Furthermore, Patel’s care in making his family feel comfortable and the thoughtfulness of his questions, which elicited authentic and meaningful answers, are undeniable. In comparison, repetitive torso undulations, hand flourishes, one legged balances, and arm circles feel somewhat underdeveloped, holding space for rather than responding to the text they accompany. 

Some choreographic moments do stand out, however. A scene in which Patel performs rapid hand gestures to the rhythm of his mother’s speech, demonstrates his remarkable dexterity, while moments in which he performs jerky torso spasms, and tangles his hands awkwardly behind his back effectively represent how it may feel to be caught between two cultures. It’s as if his body is trying to digest, calibrate, unravel conflicting influences. 

Towards the end of “Mathroo Basha,” Patel duets with his shadow on the side wall of the stage, carving his arms into wide, sculptural, warrior-like forms—a powerful nod to being split in two, and battling with a dual identity? The silhouette may also represent future generations of his family who will inherit his struggle and grapple with it in new ways. The success of this moment, like many others in Mathroo Basha,” relies heavily on lighting and the accompanying recording of Patel meditating on what future Baas—older women in Gujarati culture—in his family will think and look like. As this was only a preview performance, perhaps with time Patel will flesh out his physical vocabulary so that he can speak as eloquently through his body as he does through the recorded voices of his family members. 

Emily May


Emily May is a British-born, Berlin-based arts writer and editor specializing in dance and performance. An alumna of Trinity Laban Conservatoire for Music and Dance and a member of the Dance Section of the U.K. Critics' Circle, she regularly contributes to publications across Europe and America including Dance Magazine, Art Review, Frieze, The Stage, Flash Art, The Brooklyn Rail, and Springback Magazine. She is currently an editor at COLORSxSTUDIOS, where she launched and continues to manage a new editorial platform.

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