Should I report being harassed at work for not speaking the local language?

Hey everyone,

I’m currently doing an internship overseas (in Pakistan) in AI/Machine Learning. I’m originally a British citizen (born and raised- pak origin) and I’m also doing a part-time master’s online alongside this.

I’ve been struggling to get my foot in the door career-wise, so a family connection (my aunt, who is a director at this company) helped me get this internship. She encouraged me to spend 2 months in the office before working fully remote back in my home country, so I agreed. The company have clients in USA and in Europe.

It’s been a month now and, honestly, the experience has been pretty negative. Some staff were welcoming since I’m a foreigner, but others have been toxic. Even though the professional language is supposed to be English in this environment, I’ve been mocked for not speaking the local language (Urdu).

For context, my Urdu is very poor because I had language difficulties growing up — we moved around a lot until eventually settling in the UK. At work, when I speak English, some colleagues get annoyed, refuse to give proper feedback, or just keep switching to Urdu even when I ask them to stick to English. Sometimes they giggle or make me feel isolated, especially during lunch breaks. I also keep getting asked “why don’t you speak the language?” which just makes things worse.

Because of this, my performance and mental health are suffering. I am learning a lot in terms of AI, but the environment is making me miserable. I’m seriously considering not continuing the internship if this harassment keeps happening.

Should I report this to HR/my aunt (she’s super chill), or just try to push through until the 2 months are up?