Dhaka is full of life. Hustling and bustling. The city wakes up not with the sun but with the footsteps of its working class. The morning light uncovers a city that is already in flow. Men march through the streets with a steady purpose, roaming around everywhere.

A man walks steadily up the steps of a road to start his day. The city is just waking up around him and the background hum follows.

The morning breeze is still blowing but the work  is already burdensome for this rider. He balances huge sacks on the back of his cycle. He pedals, pedals hard to make his delivery timely.

A man in a bright neon vest works through the mud and slush to clear the last night’s and morning’s waste. He pushes his metal cart with the uneven and filthy ground as the shops are still closed while the rest of Dhaka is just starting to wake up.

Strength and balance are important for this man carrying a massive basket of bananas on his head walking along with the Karwanbazar rail tracks. He brings fresh fruit to us everyday and an essential link in the food chain of the city.

In the open-air a barber provides a fresh trim to a customer to start the day wearing a yellow shirt and a prayer cap as he carefully navigates his tools. The place is on the brink of a narrow and dusty path of a canal.

Under the massive concrete pillars of Metro station, a few workers hurdled up playing cards for their mid morning break, the sun hitting directly on them.

A man sits among sacks of vegetables, calculating the wholesale goods that came from different parts of the country. This pause is part of the work, before the weight of day falls above his shoulders.

An  elderly street vendor counting his earnings carefully wearing a hoodie. Cigarettes, betel leaf and simple items rest on his worn out tray. He stays focused with patience for this survival as the busy crowds pass by, busy and fast.

The morning rush is at its peak. Everyone is running to go to their workplaces. Dhaka’s buses play a key role for commuting for them. Among this rush, a bus conductor reaches his hold to a small stack of notes. 

A team of workers scrubs the pavement before the roads fill up with traffic. They use water hoses and cleaners to dust away everything, a repetitive task for them every morning.