The picture has become the latest topic of controversy in a country where secular nationalism and Islamism have long battled each other.
by Shoaib Daniyal
Published Jul 26, 2018 · 10:30 am
Jibon Ahmed
On Monday, a young Bangladeshi photographer, Jibon Ahmed, posted a picture of a couple kissing gently as a monsoon shower hit. The location is Dhaka University and behind the couple seemingly in love, people go about their business. A man checks his phone under an umbrella and a couple of tea vendors remain busy.
Ahmed posted the picture with the caption, “This is a poem of the blessed rains, let love be free.” The photo immediately went viral. Some people appreciated it for the beauty it conveyed, others assigned to it a political sentiment, which is always close at hand in a country where secular Bengali nationalism and Islamism have long battled each other, and bitterly.
Soon, however, the matter jumped from the internet into the real world. Barely hours after he had posted the photo, Ahmed was assaulted by other photographers at Dhaka University. Some reports on social media claim Ahmed has been fired from his job as a photojournalist with a news website.
by Shoaib Daniyal
Published Jul 26, 2018 · 10:30 am
Jibon Ahmed
On Monday, a young Bangladeshi photographer, Jibon Ahmed, posted a picture of a couple kissing gently as a monsoon shower hit. The location is Dhaka University and behind the couple seemingly in love, people go about their business. A man checks his phone under an umbrella and a couple of tea vendors remain busy.
Ahmed posted the picture with the caption, “This is a poem of the blessed rains, let love be free.” The photo immediately went viral. Some people appreciated it for the beauty it conveyed, others assigned to it a political sentiment, which is always close at hand in a country where secular Bengali nationalism and Islamism have long battled each other, and bitterly.
Soon, however, the matter jumped from the internet into the real world. Barely hours after he had posted the photo, Ahmed was assaulted by other photographers at Dhaka University. Some reports on social media claim Ahmed has been fired from his job as a photojournalist with a news website.
