This piece of work is in no way a slight to the image of rickshawalas . Regardless of what I tell you, without them, Bangladesh wouldn't be Bangladesh. But that doesn't negate the fact that some of them can get woefully irritating. Here are some of the most irritating types:

THE ARROGANT



God bless this guy (note the sarcasm). Upon meeting him, the first thing you'll notice is that his attitude ranges from a moderate to a complete snob. Can you pull a rickshaw for a few minutes straight? Nope, but he can. And he's going to make sure you know it by asking ridiculous fares for short distances. As an added bonus, he may also go slowly despite not having gone anywhere for a while.

THE BANGLADESHI IDOL



In Bangladesh, if you're a singer who never found his rightful place in a band, you'll find an equally rightful place on a rickshaw (driving it, not riding it). This guy just lets go, for better or worse, for your ears, depending on your luck.

THE PERVERT



If I hadn't had so many female friends (forever alone), I wouldn't have even known this guy existed. It could go from lightly glancing at you to completely ogling you openly. As reprehensible as it is, it's worse when you realise their effort and fare depends on how attractive he thinks you are. Needless to say but saying it anyway, don't get on that rickshaw.

THE EMO



I understand that these guys have it hard. They have to support themselves and their families. All they've got is tricycle with a passenger seat which they have to paddle around for other people, not even sitting in the comparatively comfortable seats, and often paid disproportionately to the work they do. But when you've got this guy telling you for 30 minutes nonstop about how his five mothers are dying in the hopes you pay him extra, it gets tiring.

THE TRANQUIL



He won't say anything. The entire ride, absolutely nothing. He has looked into the void, and has BECOME the void.

THE WHITE NOISE



The complete opposite of the Tranquil, this guy will absolutely not stop talking. It doesn't matter if you're wearing earphones, talking to your fellow passenger, or if you've somehow died as a last resort to escape him. To him, talking comes first; pulling the rickshaw is a distant second. It actually even gets dangerous because he turns around in his seat on a busy road to talk to you. And just when you think it can't get any worse, it turns out he's White Noise AND an Emo COMBINED. How's that for a horror story, Stephen King?

Apart from the abovementioned, rickshawalas are gems we probably don't deserve, but definitely ones we need.

Rasheed Khan is a hug monster making good music but terrible puns and jokes where he's probably the only one laughing. Ask him how to pronounce his name at aarcvard@gmail.com