Crusader against love cinemas caught watching R-rated movies

Supreme Court lawyer, known for his opposition to depictions of love and romance, exposed himself to watching an R-rated movie in a Facebook post.

Supreme Court lawyer Md. Mahmudul Hasan Mamun, known for giving legal notices recommending the government to stop the production of such content, objecting to the “excess of love and romance” in the country's dramas and movies.

However, a look at the lawyer’s Facebook page revealed that he himself is quite a romantic in his personal life. He also visited and posted pictures of him standing in front of the Taj Mahal in Delhi, the famous symbol of love.

Looking at his social media posts, he is quite the movie lover himself. Apparently, watching romantic movies is a hobby of his.

According to his Facebook post, on August 5, 2025, he announced that he would watch the Indian romance-drama movie 'Radhe Shyam'. Earlier, on May 9 of the same year, he had also posted about watching the Hollywood fantasy adventure movie 'Stardust', which does feature the same thing he rallied against, but more risqué.

But nothing could compare to the Facebook post about watching the movie 'The Dictator', which was released in 2012 as an R-rated movie.

Though watching The Dictator is nothing new or shocking, as many in Bangladesh have watched it, albeit in its altered and censored state, when it was airing on TV, for a Supreme Court lawyer to have watched this while crusading against the “immorality” of romance and intimacy shown in media. 

He also didn’t clarify whether or not he watched the uncensored cut of The Dictator. This is because most channels, especially channels based in India or countries with stricter censorship rules, shows the censored cut.

In response, there is a lot of discussion on social media about why such a person filed a writ to ban romantic dramas and movies. Netizens are claiming that he did this to stay relevant and keep himself in the news.

Recently, Mahmudul Hasan Mamun objected to the abundance of love and romance-centered stories in the country's dramas and movies. He sent a legal notice to the government to take necessary measures to stop the production and broadcasting of dramas and movies focusing only on love and romance.

The notice sent in public interest on Thursday (August 27) was addressed to the Cabinet Secretary, Information and Broadcasting Secretary, Cultural Affairs Secretary and the Chairman of the Bangladesh Film Censor Board.

In the notice, the lawyer claimed that the number of love and romance-based stories in the country's films and dramas has increased in recent times. This is not only destroying the cultural balance of the country, but creates a fear of students being distracted from their studies and future careers.

In addition, objections have also been raised regarding the presentation of extramarital affairs and the free display of immoral relationships in some dramas and films, claiming that such presentations are having a negative impact on family values and social morality, and is contributing to the rise in anarchy and crime in society.

Mahmudul Hasan Mamun would go as far as to cite Articles 21(1), 23 and 39 of the Constitution in support of his claim. The notice states that although Article 39 of the Constitution guarantees freedom of speech, there is scope for imposing reasonable restrictions in the interests of decency and morality.

The notice not only demands stricter restrictions on the production and broadcasting of dramas and films that centers on love and romance.

The notice has been issued asking the government to inform about the administrative action taken in this regard within 10 days of receiving the notice. Otherwise, a public interest writ petition will be filed in the High Court as per Article 102 of the Constitution, the notice states.

Naturally, this hasn’t endeared him to the public, given his heavy-handed approach to the media depicting “romantic imagery”. Onlookers are hanging on to his recent and past social media posts to point out his hypocrisy, especially his post about watching The Dictator. For now, only time will tell if this will get in the way of his crusade against risqué content in Bangladeshi media. 

-NS