Artist Akhter came to Dhaka's Karail slum from Brahmanbaria twenty years ago.
He was trying to control the crying of his sick little boy while talking to him.
Artist Akhter says that at the time of his daughter's marriage, the marriage was not taking place without dowry.
In such a situation, he had to negotiate with the boy's side about the amount of money.
He says, "I met the two parties. Then the conversation went well. But about the dowry it was seen that he said I have to pay one lakh rupees. I said I can't afford to pay one lakh rupees. Then the boy's party paid eighty thousand rupees instead of one lakh rupees." I had to pay for those eighty thousand. "
He says he had to do it for his daughter's happiness.
But often instead of happiness, many girls are tortured. Shirin Akhter of Narsingdi worked as a housemaid in Banani, Dhaka.
He married his daughter a couple of years ago. There has also been a boy. Some gold jewelry was supposed to be given at the wedding.

Photo source, ALLISON JOYCE
Photo caption,
Many say they have to pay dowry for their daughter's happiness.
He could not pay the full amount, so he said that his daughter was tortured at various times.
With that description, he was saying, "I admitted that I could pay. But I couldn't. I killed the girl. She told me not to give her rice. The girl cried. You have to go and get it later.
Torture and lawsuits due to dowry in Bangladesh
According to the Bangladesh Mahila Parishad, 102 women were killed in 2016 due to dowry.
But this information is considered a partial figure because not much information is published in the newspaper.
According to the Bangladesh Police, 628 dowry cases have been registered in the last two years. Giving and receiving dowry is prohibited legally in Bangladesh.
But still dowry is a very recognized issue in the society of Bangladesh. If the girl has any physical problem, if the color of the skin is suppressed or if the pot is in a big job, its amount increases further.
Informative.