PHIL MAXWELL

The streets around where I live in Spitalfields have been an inspiration to me and are always full of characters who bring the place alive. Similarly streets in Bangladesh are bursting with life so here we have the East End with Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh. Originally published 2 years ago I’ve added a few more images to this blog.

Brick Lane, early nineteen eighties. This lady would stand alone and talk to herself pointing in different directions as if she was recollecting life from past decades.

Brick Lane, early nineteen eighties. This gentlemen looks immaculate as he peers across Bethnal Green Rd to the other part of Brick Lane. Taking a rest, I wonder if he was imagining the changes that would transform the area in the coming decades.

Dhaka 1995. A relatively quiet street scene in Dhaka. When I visited the same street last year there were newly installed traffic lights (generally ignored by drivers), and less rickshaws. Police in Bangladesh have begun a campaign to remove unlicensed cycle rickshaws from the capital’s streets. The authorities say the long-term aim is to halve the city’s estimated 400,000 cycle rickshaws. This has led to the rickshaw drivers being harassed and bullied by the police. As the rickshaw driver in this photograph takes a well earned break, the bare footed boy walks past with his bag of newspapers. Rickshaw drivers ride all day earning less than three dollars in stifling heat and ferocious rain.

Dhaka, 1995. Outside a hairdressers the bicycle boy smiles directly into the camera. In Bangladesh people will often ask you to take their picture if they see you with a camera and are comfortable with having their photograph taken.