Let's neither beat about the bush nor indulge in sugar-coating because we neither have the time nor the empathy for any of that. The plain fact is -- Dhaka is an impatient, mean, rude, cruel, and selfish city. Call it "cranky Dhaka" if you will!

If life was a video game and Dhaka was a level or chapter there, the screen would say, "Difficulty: High". It is not for beginners. Similarly, if Dhaka was a person and not a city, he would be the most ill-mannered and bad-tempered man you ever met!

Why though? What gives Dhaka such a character?

The Dhaka stress

One reason behind this -- encompassing several aspects -- is that the city itself is extremely stressful. Sometimes, you will feel that you are drained out of energy for no apparent reason. This not-so-apparent cause is the capital's harrowing traffic, noise and air pollution, and of course, price hikes every step of the way. All these accumulate stress, vented out through ill-temper.

The "nobody-can-beat-me" attitude

It could be a matter of 10 takas but many would still haggle their lives out with a poor street vendor. Or, a driver would suddenly honk and speed up when another vehicle is trying to enter his lane in no wrongful way whatsoever.

These are examples of the "me-first" or "nobody-can-beat-me" attitude that is so prevalent in our metropolis.

I have a theory about where this kind of behaviour comes from. It arises from a sense of insecurity that the other guy is trying to deceive you or outsmart you in some way and hence you must outrun him or "win" against him!

A desensitised Dhaka

Nothing surprises us anymore. An underprivileged child crying on the street out of hunger, people sleeping on foot over bridges, rowdy young men breaking into a violent brawl, buses and buildings on fire -- we have unfortunately seen them all.

It has arguably somewhat hardened our souls or completely robbed us of it. No matter what Dhaka throws at us, we would not be very shocked or feel those emotions.

The burden of Dhaka

It is easy to blame our city or its authorities and citizens. And while a lot of improvements are indeed needed, have you wondered how much burdened our city is? An astounding population, not to forget the population density, and the demands of that population -- chiefly jobs and education -- put immense pressure on this city.

The great Dhaka race

We are in a race -- to earn a fatter pay cheque, to get that corner office, to buy a flat, and so on. In this race, we are not in the mood to slow down, stop and ponder, appreciate people or beauty. In order to attain what we are after we have become greedy and selfish.

Is there anything wrong with having ambitions? Of course not! But does that justify our greediness and selfishness? I wouldn't know. I am a Dhaka resident myself!