Dhakaiya Kutti dialect, also known as Old Dhakaiya Bengali or simply Dhakaiya, is a Bengali dialect, spoken by the Dhakaiya Kuttis of Old Dhaka city in Bangladesh. This dialect is fully mutually intelligible with Standard Bengali but has some differences in vocabulary. It is not used in formal settings anymore although historically the local Bais and Bara panchayets are said to have used it sometimes.
The Rajoshik sculpture, in front of the InterContinental Dhaka, displays a horse carriage that was once common in the city.
The Old Dhakaites are an Indo-Aryan cultural group viewed as the original inhabitants of Dhaka. They are sometimes referred to as simply Dhakaites or Dhakaiya. Their history dates back to the Mughal period with the migration of Bengali cultivators and merchants to the city. The cultivators came to be known as Kutti and they speak Dhakaiya Kutti, a dialect of Bengali and the merchants came to be known as Khoshbas and speak Dhakaiya Urdu. There are sizeable populations in other parts of Bangladesh. The Old Dhakaiyas maintain a distinct regional identity in addition to their ethnic Bengali identity, due to cultural, geographical and historical reasons. They have been described as a wealthy but very closed-off community; evidently being a minority in their own hometown. It is said that some people living in Greater Dhaka are even unaware of the existence of an Urdu-speaking non-Bihari minority community although their presence dates back centuries.
A Dhakaiya Muslim lady in a muslin sari reclining with a hookah.
The Rajoshik sculpture, in front of the InterContinental Dhaka, displays a horse carriage and its driver.
A young boy flying a kite in the Shakrain festival.
Bakarkhani being made in Dhaka, Bangladesh.