Editorial

See if this sounds familiar. You are a young adult who’s grown up in Dhaka. You have visited places around the country, or maybe even around the world with your family, but the city is the only place you’ve stayed in for a prolonged period of time. Regrettable as it may be, this is the only place that sometimes gives you a sense of identity, but then the terrible things that happen around here makes you curse yourself for ever thinking you belonged here. Not to mention the lack of safety in the city for anyone even slightly vulnerable, and you feel like every ounce of love you’ve ever had for Dhaka has been undeserved.

All of this doesn’t change the fact that for many people, Dhaka is still home. And when your home is in tatters, like many troubled children, re-imagining Dhaka is one of our favourite pastimes. That is exactly why the prospect of MRT lines 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6 being completed by 2035 excites me, and that is exactly why this week’s cover story could be exciting to you.

– Azmin Azran, Sub-editor, SHOUT