Bangladesh

Society is male-dominated. Social classes play an integral but diminishing role in Bangladesh. Bangladeshis are proud of their artistic tradition, which is much older than their young country.

Bangladeshis use different suffixes with names to show respect. One does not show signs of affection to members of the opposite sex in public. Age plays a role in how to address another person. The terms "brother" or "sister" are used for friends as well as for members of the family.

Bangladeshis will shake the hand of a Western man, but if the Bangladeshi meets a woman of either nationality, he or she will just nod their head while being introduced. It is considered unclean if you transfer food from your plate to another person's plate, even if it's your spouse's plate. it is appropriate to remove your shoes before you enter a mosque.

Eye contact during conversation shows sincerity. Bangladeshis are sensitive about one's foot touching books or reading materials. It is polite to point with the chin. Beckoning with the index finger is very rude.

People say they will try to attend an event even if they cannot, as saying no, may be viewed as not being a friend. Bangladeshis visit friends and family frequently. Most people try to avoid being the first or last to arrive. Extended family is usually invited to family gatherings. Gifts are not expected of guests, but dinner invitations are often reciprocated.

Women do not usually wear pants. Adults do not wear shorts. In rural areas, men wear the lungi (a piece of cotton cloth, usually checkered that is wrapped around the waist) and a vest or a shirt.

Rice is the main staple food. Spicy food is preferred. Food is often marinated in shu’ra (made from chopped onions and spices marinated in warm cooking oil. Aside from carrots and cucumbers, all vegetables are fried. Masoor Daal is one of the most commonly consumed dishes in Bangladesh. Rasguallas is a favorite dessert eaten on special holidays.

Bangladeshis generally do not use knives and forks at home, but spoons are used to eat sweets. Food is eaten with the right hand, which is washed after each meal. Shu’ra ( a sauce) is often served with meals. Food is not passed around the table; rather, plates are taken to a main dish for serving.

Rice is the main staple food. Spicy food is preferred. Food is often marinated in shu’ra (made from chopped onions and spices marinated in warm cooking oil. Aside from carrots and cucumbers, all vegetables are fried. Masoor Daal is one of the most commonly consumed dishes in Bangladesh. Rasguallas is a favorite dessert eaten on special holidays.

Bangladesh has few nursing homes and no government-provided retirement program. Grandparents often help child care while the parents are working. Due to economic necessity, extended families often share the same dwelling, but the nuclear family is becoming more popular with the younger generation. Children, especially sons, are expected to care for their elderly parents.

Men marry after finishing an education or when they have financial security. Marriage is often arranged through a "ghatak", who could be a family friend or close relative. Sometimes, the man sends a formal marriage proposal to the woman's parents through an older relative.

Dating is rarely done. When men and women go out the relationship is expected to lead to marriage. Sexual relations before marriage is strongly discouraged. Women are often married before the age of eighteen, especially in rural areas. Divorce and polygamy are legal but carry a negative stigma.

Kabaddi is the national sport of Bangladesh. In Kabaddi, two teams compete with each other for higher scores, by touching or capturing the players of the opponent team. Each team consists of 12 players, of which seven are on the court at a time, and five are in reserve. The game consists of two 20-minute halves, with a break of five minutes for a change of sides.

The kabaddi playing area is 12.50m x 10m, divided by a line into two halves. The side winning the toss sends a 'raider', who enters the opponents' court chanting, 'kabaddi-kabaddi'. The raider's aim is to touch any or all players on the opposing side and return to his court in one breath. The person, whom the raider touches, will then be out. The aim of the opposing team will be to hold the raider and stop him from returning to his own court until he takes another breath. If the raider cannot return to his court in the same breath while chanting 'kabaddi', he will be declared out. Each team alternates in sending a player into the opponents' court. If a player goes out of the boundary line during the course of the play, or if any part of his body touches the ground outside the boundary, he will be out, except during a struggle.

The team scores a lona ( a bonus of two points) if the entire opposition is declared out. The game then continues by putting all the players on both sides. Matches are staged on the basis of age groups, and weight. Seven officials supervise a match - one referee, two umpires, two linesmen, a timekeeper, and a scorer.

Golla chut is played by children in a moderate size open space, the game could be played between 12-15 kids or even more. Two teams are formed. After a toss, one team becomes the ‘captives’ and the other team becomes the markers. At any end of the field, a little circle is made which is called ‘golla’, where a member of the captive team is held prisoner. The task of the captive team is to make him free. Members of the markers team stand together in 4/5 lines separated from each other by 2/3 meters. They cannot leave their lines. Members of the captive team try to go through those lines and reach the prisoner in ‘golla’, if they can pass through all the lines untouched and reach him, they win, and if the marker team manages to touch all the members of the opposite team trying to pass through, they win. And then the role of the team reverses, and play starts again.

Dari a bandha is like Golla-chut, except that it is played in a badminton court, and there is no circle/golla. Here the person who gets touched is replaced by the marker who touched him, and the marker is set free.

A day in the life of a kid living in Bangladesh is different depending on the background he/she is from. So many lifestyles exist here side by side because of the socio-economical differences. In big cities, morning schools start early. On a school day, kids get dressed; have a very quick breakfast, and then rush off to the school. In higher middle-class families, the breakfast menu for kids could be quick sandwiches, eggs, and milk. In middle and lower middle class families, the typical breakfast is Rooti (thin round plain traditional bread) with vegetable/omelet. Village kids usually wake up at dawn. Then many of them help their fathers (most of them are farmers) in agriculture for an hour or so before heading for school. The village kids usually walk to school. Small town kids also use bicycles and rickshaws (a traditional environment-friendly 3-wheeler) to reach their schools. In big cities, almost all kind of transportation is used. Well-off kids usually go to schools in their own private cars, whereas kids from middle-class families use different means of transport. Some of them use transportation facilities provided by the school, some use transportation services provided by third parties, and others use public transportation like buses. Taxis and CNG-run three-wheelers are also used for long-distance travel to school, whereas rickshaws are heavily used by the middle/lower middle class for short/moderate distant travels to school.

Schools are categorized into two groups, public schools, and private schools. Private schools are relatively new, and most of them could be found in cities and urban areas. Good private schools usually have well-equipped classrooms with computers, projectors, and other audio-visual equipment. But these schools usually have high tuition fees and only a small privileged group of kids can afford to go there. A big downside of most of these private schools is that they do not have their own playgrounds on the school premise. Many of the government-funded public schools are early establishments (30/40 years old on average) and usually have big playgrounds. But the major problem in public schools is the teacher-student ratio. A typical classroom in a public school usually has around 60/70 kids and lacks proper resources. In many classrooms, blackboard and chalks are all a teacher has as teaching equipment and an inadequate number of benches/chairs is accommodated in seemingly insufficient space. Books are provided for free at the start of the year in public schools.

Classes in primary schools here usually have a duration of 1 hour. The time for recess is half an hour. Many students carry small Tiffin carriers with them which contain homemade meals. Public schools provide Tiffin also during recess, in private schools, this is not the case though. Children who attend school do not speak English as a primary language at home. At home, conversations take place in their mother language, Bengali. There are private English medium schools where children use English as the language for communication during in-class hours. But these schools are only prevalent in big cities and are usually for the upper/upper-middle-class kids. For all the public and Bengali medium schools, English is included in the curriculum as a subject from grade 1 through grade 12. The primary education completion rate is about 75% and enrollment in the Secondary level is a mere 42%. The majority of the population live in villages and the majority of them are farmers. Many kids have to drop school early in their life in order to support their fathers and families in farming. The cost of education is an issue here. The awareness level is continually increasing and village people are getting to understand the importance of education. The government is also extending a helping hand by setting up more schools in remote areas and providing books for free. A number of NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations) are operating in villages across the country and they are playing a good part in raising awareness about a good education. Both public and private schools are well disciplined. Students have to attend daily parades in morning schools and the day usually begins with reciting the national anthem. Uniforms are mandatory in both public and private schools. The teacher-student relationship here is very warm and children greet their teachers warmly. Children usually return home directly after school, unless there is a school trip arranged. In city schools, some children go to private tutors/coaching centers after school ends. This practice is prevalent mostly because of the high teacher-student ratio which does not allow for individual attention for each student in the classroom. Some students go to cultural institutions after school hours as well.

Cricket is the most popular sport, and wherever there is opportunity and space, kids play cricket. They even play cricket in the streets. Football (soccer) is the second favorite sport, but as playing fields are scarce in big cities, not all the kids get the chance to play. Public schools provide some school-based playing facilities for children, but they are few in number. Community-based sports activities also exist in different cities. Computer games are becoming the most engaging and most frequent extracurricular activity for kids in big cities like Dhaka or Chittagong. Playing activities are more diverse and frequent in suburb/rural areas of the country. Kids play different kinds of sports, some of which are unique to the country. Although cricket is by far the most popular sport here, the national sport is Ha-do-do, which is more prevalent in rural/suburban areas. Kabadi, dari-a-bandha, golla-chut are some of the popular sports among kids which require no equipment, but are fun to play.

On weekends, kids usually have family outings or visit their relatives, which is very common in Bangladesh as people have strong family ties. Kids spend their evenings mostly doing homework and watching TV programs. Evening meals usually include biscuits/chips/noodles or some local delicacies prepared by moms which may include spicy fried vegetable ‘pakora’s (a meatball or chicken nugget), puri, or chotpoti and fooska. The dinner menu usually contains the same food ingredients as the lunch menu. Children privileged with a computer spend time in front of their PC. Typical bedtime for urban kids is between 11:00 to 11:30 p.m. The rural kids go to bed earlier around 9:00 to 9:30 p.m.