Original subtitles

(bird cawing)

(horns honking)

(traffic humming)

(bell ringing)

(upbeat music)

(siren wailing)

The skyline of Dakha,

the capital of Bangladesh.

More than 12 million people live

in this fast growing metropolis

and thousands more arrive every day.

(traffic humming)

The streets of Dakha have long become

like the eye of a needle.

There are not enough streets for the

increasing number of people and vehicles.

(horns honking)

Worse than the foul air is the noise on the street.

Even if traffic is at a complete standstill

horns are always honking.

Bangladesh lies to the east of India,

it's northern border is formed by the Himalayas.

The center of this congestion plagued city

are the streets around the bus station of Gulistan.

(sitar music)

(yelling in foreign language)

Rickshaws still dominate the streets of the city.

25 year old Badshed Meea has been transporting goods

by rickshaw for over seven years now.

(traffic humming)

(child yelling)

(yelling in foreign language)

Today Badshed has to take TV sets and accessories

to a shop in the old town for a logistics company.

If he loads up his rickshaw to the top

he gets the equivalent of 70 cents per kilometer.

(Badshed speaking in a foreign language)

He can manage two or three such trips a day.

It depends on how bad the congestion is

and if he can get through without problems.

(speaking in a foreign language)

I might have to bribe the traffic police,

but this is already included in the price.

(Badshed speaking in a foreign language)

(lively music)

(Badshed speaking in a foreign language)

(traffic humming)

Every day thousands of young people

like Badshed arrive in the capital.

They dream of wealth and fast money,

most of them end up on the streets of Dakha.

The job of rickshaw driver

is a good opportunity to earn money.

(Badshed speaking in a foreign language)

My home village is called Shahapur,

there are no jobs there so I came to Dakha.

Life and work here are hard,

there are a lot of traffic jams in Dakha.

Driving is dangerous and rickshaws are banned

on the larger main streets, but I'll manage.

There are many spots where the traffic police stop us.

Sometimes they beat us, but if you give them ten cents

then they let you drive on.

(Badshed speaking in a foreign language)

(soft music)

(Badshed speaking in a foreign language)

It's going uphill up there

and you have to get off and help me push.

(Badshed speaking in a foreign language)

Now we're taking a left turn.

(traffic humming)

In the streets of Dakha

things can easily get lost,

so the logistics company sends its helpers along.

They watch the goods and show Badshed the way

through the maze of streets.

(men yelling)

(soft music)

Accidents and broken vehicles are part of the scenery,

they're often the aftermath of a bit of jostling

or inconsiderate drivers.

The age and poor condition of the vehicles

make any transport a high risk journey.

This old lorry was hopelessly overloaded,

18 tons of steel rods instead of the legal limit of five

caused it to break down in the middle of the junction.

(speaking in a foreign language)

It's terrible we're running late,

we've got more expenses and won't be getting our wages,

we have to pay for everything out of our own pocket.

It's gonna cost us dearly.

(metal slapping)

This time no one got hurt,

but accidents like this

are typical for the streets of Dakha.

(singing in a foreign language)

35 year old rickshaw driver Mohammed Azeem

was swept into the streets of Dakha more than 20 years ago.

Every day he drives passengers through the city

to earn a few euros.

Azeem has a wife and two children to feed.

(horns honking) (bells ringing)

He knows the streets and its dangers

and knows exactly what to look out for.

(speaking in a foreign language)

Actually, all other vehicles

are dangerous for me,

but I have to pay particular attention

to buses, lorries and ordinary cars.

(speaking in a foreign language)

The accident happened when a van

hit me from behind and held me curbside.

I lost consciousness immediately,

it took me three months to get back onto the rickshaw.

(speaking in a foreign language)

There are too many rickshaw drivers in Dakha,

any newcomer can do this job,

for Azeem this means ever longer waiting times

and prices are competitive.

(speaking in a foreign language)

Rickshaw, how much do you want?

20 cents.

15.

No.

the other rickshaws ask for less.

I take 20, go to the others.

No I don't have time, let's go.

(bell ringing)

(traffic humming)

Driving on the street is not only dangerous,

it's also exhausting.

Azeem can't manage more than three or four hours per day.

Sometimes he also has to wait for over 10 hours.

At the end of the day he's often left with just a few euros.

He will send most of this money to his wife and children

who live in the countryside.

(speaking in a foreign language)

When I sleep or walk my joints often ache.

(Azeem speaks in a foreign language)

I can't say how much longer I will be able to do this,

how much longer my body can take the strain,

but I have to feed and raise my children somehow.

(singing in a foreign language)

(yelling in a foreign language)

After one hour stuck in traffic

Badshed has covered the short distance to the old town.

(yelling in a foreign language)

Together with the logistics company's helpers

he delivers the goods.

Particularly in the hot tropical summer

a taxi with air conditioning is the only chance

to escape the overheated streets for a short while.

(siren wailing)

Mohammed Amanula's taxi is a luxury

only rich people can afford.

Mohammed has been steering his yellow cab

through the big city jungle of Dakha for seven years now.

(Mohammed Amanula speaking in a foreign language)

The worst thing

is the ever present traffic jams,

they cause lots of problems,

sometimes I need two hours for a short distance

you would normally need 20 minutes for.

This way I have fewer customers and make hardly any money.

My job's not really worth it's while anymore.

It's usually richer clients, business people,

foreigners who need to get to the airport

who treat themselves to a taxi.

Englishman David Ginnings often travels

to Bangladesh for business

and has managed to pick up a few words

of the local language.

(David speaking in a foreign language)

However David has not managed to get used to

the traffic in Dakha.

I mean, I drive in Rome,

I've driven in Naples for 30 years.

I live in Italy, I've been there for 30 years,

but I would never drive in Dakha, never.

I wouldn't risk it, first because people are not insured,

which is very important.

My friend's brother is now mad, he was hit,

now he's completely crazy, brain damaged.

And they just run away,

if you have an accident they never stop,

because the people would lynch them, kill them.

I mean, walking across the road is a problem,

the crossings are very few and the people take no notice,

they take no notice of the police.

Traffic lights are just a waste of money.

(lively music)

You hop across the road,

you try to stop the cars with your hand.

They don't easily let you go,

and they get out in the middle of the traffic

and check the, something, like this.

It's very informal, I mean,

I don't think they have a highway code,

or if they do, I don't think anybody's ever read it.

I don't think the police have read it,

because they don't stop people.

Occasionally the government

tries to lay down the law.

They just issued a new highway code.

Please read this

and take note of the new rules.

Are those the new laws?

Yes.

I got something similar the other day.

Okay.

The government wants to enforce

drivers keeping to their individual lanes.

(speaking in a foreign language)

Actually, it's a problem for all of us,

bus and taxi drivers are doing it wrong,

but the worst offenders are the rickshaw drivers.

They haven't got a clue about the highway code.

I never know where they go next.

They don't even have an indicator, it's terrible.

And they do whatever they want.

It's true that we often go too fast,

but we're not the only ones.

Our customers want to reach their destination quickly,

so we simply step on it.

There are policemen

at almost all the major junctions

regulating the flow of traffic.

Without them, traffic would come to a complete standstill.

People respect the officers more than the traffic signs,

but even they can't really control the chaos.

(whistle blowing)

(police officer speaking in a foreign language)

Everyone wants to go first,

if we don't put a stop to this behavior

nothing will ever change.

Everyone simply drives onto the junction,

jack-knives and obstructs the rest of the traffic.

No one gives in, everyone thinks only of themselves,

and how to get away the quickest.

It's rush hour, not even the rickshaws

can get through now.

Slowly the mood is reaching boiling point.

In the old town the next transport is waiting for Badshed.

At a wholesaler's he loads building materials

which he is to take to a building site.

At least there are no dangerous buses

or lorries in old Dakha.

(Badshed speaking in a foreign language)

It's hard work,

but I don't have an alternative.

I once fell off my bicycle and broke my leg,

when I transport pipes like those it's very dangerous,

the streets are narrow and I have to make sure

I don't get caught anywhere.

(soft music)

Badshed never finished school,

instead he went to work,

in order to support his family in the countryside.

Because Badshed started to work,

his brother was able to study.

If we were both studying

we wouldn't have enough money

and in the end we'd both fail.

Badshed's situation is typical

for the life of the poor in Bangladesh.

Often there is only enough money

to pay for the education of one family member.

Badshed's family expects him to make this sacrifice,

but it's a high risk plan.

If I ever cause an accident,

it would be a disaster,

if it's my fault and the driver is injured

and his car damaged,

I'd need money for the repairs and medical costs.

(loud traffic)

Something like that would cause great

hardship for the family.

(loud yelling)

(Azeem speaking in a foreign language)

Rickshaw driver Azeem is on his way

to the hospital with a customer.

Mohammed Zaved wants to visit his nephew

who has had a traffic accident.

(horn honking) (bell ringing)

(speaking in a foreign language)

Every day up to 200 victims of traffic accidents

end up in the community hospital.

Broken bones, cranial traumas,

but also more severe internal injuries are treated here.

The hospital barely manages

to treat the many injured people.

Lots of patients camp out in the hallways

and only receive minimal treatment.

(somber music)

Zaved's nephew was involved

in a serious accident with a taxi.

He's been waiting for weeks for his second operation.

(speaking in a foreign language)

Today on my way from the village

I saw another accident.

It involved three cars, two people were dead on the spot.

Our streets are horrible death traps.

(speaking in a foreign language)

There are not enough doctors

and not enough nurses.

Operations take place only once a week.

Anyone who can afford it books personal treatment

with the chief physician.

Fractured the midshaft of the humerus,

and this fracture has already caused nerve damage.

(people chattering)

Following the rounds

the hospital settles into it's every day routine.

(baby crying)

As there are not enough nurses,

most people have to have their relatives

look after and care for them.

This is Gulistan bus station

on the outskirts of the old town.

All those who arrive in the capitol

full of great expectations

end up here in the heart of Dakha.

Buses arrive from all over the country or leave from here.

(traffic humming)

Badshed has come here to meet his uncle.

He wants to take the afternoon bus to Shahapur,

his family's home village.

(Badshed speaking in a foreign language)

Do you know where the bus

to Shahapur leaves from?

No idea.

The bus to Shahapur, does it leave from here?

Shahapur, I dunno.

Like many rickshaw drivers,

Badshed doesn't have a bank account.

He could only handle the money personally

or give it to a family member.

Everything else would be too unreliable.

Uncle, how long have you been here?

I just got here, how are you.

Good, take the money

and give it to my mother at home.

Tell my brother to be a good boy and study.

(garbled yelling)

For many people in Bangladesh,

buses are the only means of transport they can afford.

You pay just one point five cents per kilometer,

on the other hand the passengers

have to do with no comfort whatsoever.

(yelling in a foreign language)

The large coaches are the true kings

of the streets of Dakha.

Mohammed Razhak is 32

and has been driving a bus for more than 10 years.

He doesn't mind the tightly packed space.

Why is the woman still standing?

She needs to sit down.

(speaking in a foreign language)

I start the day in the name of Allah,

but nobody is perfect.

Sometimes I drive badly,

even though I know the gap is not big enough,

I take it anyway.

I have to admit, we're to blame for some of the accidents.

Mohammed's 22 year old helper Khel Zarachman

works on the bus for up to 16 hours straight.

His job is to get the passengers on board,

to call out the bus's destination

and to guide the driver safely.

(Khel speaking in a foreign language)

On the one hand, I like the work,

but I also don't like it.

Unfortunately people don't respect us.

Even the rickshaw drivers come up to me and beat me.

Some passengers get aggressive when they're asked to pay.

They even break the windows or set fire to the bus.

(traffic humming)

We're full, no, we're full, keep going.

They don't listen, they want to get on anyway.

Transport is a scarce commodity,

if you're not assertive you don't get anywhere.

Bus driver Razhak has to do more than avoid accidents,

he also has to make sure

that there is cash in the till at the end of the day.

(Razhak speaking in a foreign language)

Bus number six is on the road

from six a.m. to 11 p.m.

At lunchtime I take a break and the rest of my life

I spend stuck in traffic.

We always have to drive as much as we can.

Rent for the bus is 40 euros per day,

we have to buy petrol on top of that.

If we actually want to earn some money

we really have to step on it.

(Razhak speaking in a foreign language)

(upbeat music)

Tensions are running high on the streets,

it takes only a tiny spark for the powder keg to explode.

(yelling in a foreign language)

Fear is a constant passenger for us,

if there's an accident most of us will take off.

There's a huge danger that the passengers,

that is to say, the simple people, would beat us to death.

So we'd rather do a runner.

A little aside from congestion

and traffic chaos there are the rickshaw stations.

They tend to belong to the people who rent out the bikes.

The vehicles are parked downstairs,

the drivers sleep upstairs.

Apart from Azeem some 100 drivers can stay here.

(speaking in a foreign language)

I would rather work

in my village with my family.

I'm actually a farmer by trade,

but I don't have my own farm and no money.

So I have no choice but to keep driving a rickshaw.

Sleeping, personal hygiene, eating,

or repairing the rickshaw.

Those are the everyday activities of the station.

The better it is run,

the longer the drivers tend to stay here.

Some even live here with their families.

Others don't actually drive,

they are busy maintaining the bikes.

The rickshaws are old and the ramshackle

streets of Dakha take their toll.

Some of the rickshaw driver's wives

earn some extra money by cooking for the men.

Three meals a day cost the equivalent of 70 cents.

Usually rice with vegetables and some fish is on the menu.

(soft music)

No one has to go hungry,

but there is no such thing as a fat rickshaw driver.

The food is just about enough to keep up their strength.

(soft music)

(people chattering)

(horn honking)

In the afternoon Azeem sets off once more.

When the office is closed business goes well,

but this is also the time when traffic

often comes to a complete standstill.

Driver Badshed has been given a big job.

In addition to the normal obstacles,

like chaos and lack of discipline,

you have to contend with the dismal state of the streets.

Everywhere there are roadworks,

which are usually not cordoned off or marked as such.

It's assumed that the road users will notice

the hole in the street in good time.

The men work with simple tools,

his wages are so low, it's cheaper than using a digger.

(soft music)

Here, supply pipes need to be laid.

(Mohammed Abdul speaking in a foreign language)

Mohammed Abdul is the boss,

it's been his job for over 20 years now

to keep patching up the streets of Dakha.

Everyone who passes by here curses us,

the traffic jam is our fault, no one likes us.

But you need to see that the street

is very dangerous for us too.

If a car comes and falls into the ditch, we're all dead.

We need to be careful,

but we also have our work to do of course.

(loud horn honking)

(people chattering)

Badshed has delivered his load,

it's time for a break and a cup of tea at his station.

Tea is only a few cents.

(speaking in a foreign language)

I just arrived here from Vilistan,

what a traffic jam.

Were the traffic police after you?

No, but one of them tried.

Luckily he didn't catch me.

(speaking in foreign language)

When talking to a colleague

Badshed quickly gets to the favorite subjects

of all rickshaw drivers, the street, the traffic jam

and the police assaults.

(speaking in a foreign language)

You better be off, back to your stuff

and have the police beat you up.

You want me to get beaten up?

Once they beat you up,

you give them 10 cents,

that's how much this is.

So I'm to pay for getting beaten up?

Yeah, but afterwards.

(soft music)

Meanwhile Azeem

has arrived on the outskirts of the city.

He's taking a lorry driver to his station.

His shift only starts after dark,

during the day lorries are banned on Dakha's streets.

(soft music)

(speaking in a foreign language)

Mohammed Amjhad Hosein mainly carries

bricks to the building sites of the city.

The brickyards are outside the city gates.

The stones are taken to the loading station

on barges and unloaded by hand.

(speaking in a foreign language)

Driver Amjhad also employs helpers

who accompany him on all trips.

(speaking in a foreign language)

When I was still driving during the day

there were many traffic jams,

sometimes I had to wait for hours.

At night it's not so bad, and it's not so hot either.

It's not entirely safe at night, there are youth gangs.

A colleague of mine was robbed recently.

They took his cell phone and his money.

(loud tapping)

Once the lorry is loaded up,

Amjhad has to wait for nightfall,

only then can he make a start.

(people chattering)

But there is always stuff to do,

or have a chat with colleagues.

(engine rumbling)

(speaking in a foreign language)

Dusk falls over the city, finally he can leave.

(rock music)

(siren wailing)

The traffic in the city won't calm down in the coming hours.

(people yelling)

(music thumping)

(horn honking)

(engine roaring)

Slowly Amjhad and his lorry

make their way to the city center.

(rock music)

Like every evening there is an invasion of lorries.

At night they supply the city

with everything it needs to stay alive.

(rock music)

(loud honking)

Now they have taken over the streets.

(loud music)

Amjhad has reached the building site

and has his men unload the lorry.

(speaking in a foreign language)

There's no point if I'm the only one

who sticks to the highway code.

Everyone needs to observe it or it's pointless.

Once an accident has happened, it's all too late anyway.

You get beaten up or thrown in jail.

If I think about that,

I don't actually feel like driving anymore.

(rock music)

It's already past midnight.

Even though Badshed is on his way to bed,

the city never sleeps.

(singing in a foreign language)

The man who rents out the rickshaw to Badshed

keeps his humble belongings in a cupboard for him.

(soft music)

Late at night the rickshaw drivers

make their bed on their bikes.

The streets of Dakha have become Badshed's home,

day and night.

(soft music)

(speaking in a foreign language)

(bell ringing)

(soft music)