TANGENTSBy Ihtisham Kabir
Street <i>Cocoons </i>
A Cocoon for the Child? Photo: Ihtisham Kabir
The other day I was photographing at a busy intersection when I saw a man walking down the sidewalk carrying a child, presumably his own. I have seen similar scenes hundreds of times before: parents protecting their children in crowded places. But something struck me about the way the father absorbed the gritty shocks of the sidewalk while the baby rested in comfort. It reminded me of a cocoon. A cocoon is a protective covering which shields and isolates insects when they are young. It provides safety and keeps intruders away. After observing this man, I noticed that people invent and use cocoons - of a virtual kind - all the time in Dhaka streets. A rickshaw, for example, provides this environment. While a rickshaw speeds through roads full of people and vehicles, it creates an invisible cocoon for its passengers precisely because of its movement which limits pushing, shoving and staring by others. The elevation of the rickshaw's seat and expandable roof enhances this feeling. In relative isolation, passengers are free to be themselves. They can read, do homework, romance, argue and chat, buy from vendors, distribute alms and talk on the phone - all in plain sight, but in the safety of their rickshaw cocoon. How about pedestrians? On Dhaka streets, most pedestrians face too many distractions and interruptions to build cocoons. There are exceptions, however: parents of small children as seen above. Also, people walking for exercise are often intensely focused on their activity. Their focus provides them a sort of mental cocoon. Using electronic devices, such as music players, instantly immerse the listener in their favourite music and reinforce the cocoon experience. Another useful cocoon prop is the newspaper. Most poignant, however, are children on their own. Without any props or support, they are quick to create and inhabit their own cocoons while the rest of the adult world goes by. They walk, play, imagine, joke, snack, even fight - with other children within their cocoons. Sometimes it takes a yelling adult or the school bell to eject them from their cocoon. For many women pedestrians, a Burkha provides functions of a cocoon. It protects them from aggressive masculine staring that is endemic in many cultures while affording them a degree of anonymity. Bus travellers have less cocoon luxury, but those lucky enough to get window seats or travelling on the roof find it easier to build their own cocoons. The ultimate cocoon may be the private car with darkened windows and air-conditioning, protecting passengers from not only the heat and dust but intrusive stares as well. I doubt if bicyclists or motorcyclists can ever construct cocoons, since their activity requires careful watch over the surroundings. There are times when inventing a cocoon is a big mistake. For example, a pedestrian absorbed in his own cocoon trying to cross a busy street is a danger to many including himself. Perhaps clothes were the first cocoons we built, but we have come a long way.
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