The assault on Bangladeshi actress Azmeri Haque Badhon during her stay in Italy for the Venice International Film Festival has received significant attention from Italian media, with reports appearing across newspapers and online news outlets.
Badhon, who is in Venice for the 83rd Venice International Film Festival as the lead actress of Rubaiyat Hossain’s The Difficult Bride, was attacked by a group of Bangladeshi nationals in Mestre. According to Badhon, the attackers identified themselves as supporters of the Awami League and Bangladesh Chhatra League and targeted her because of her support for the July uprising in Bangladesh in 2024.
Il Gazzettino was among the first Italian outlets to prominently report the incident, describing how Badhon was allegedly attacked and insulted by fellow Bangladeshis who accused her of being a “July fighter”. The report said the incident was linked to her political engagement in Bangladesh and noted that Italy’s Digos police were investigating the case.
According to the report, the attackers allegedly confronted Badhon at the hotel where she was staying in Mestre and harrassed her. She later said that she was attacked again while visiting a nearby park with her brother and his family. She alleged that the group threw water and other objects at her, took her phone and physically assaulted her while her young nephew was present.
Badhon told Italian media that she feared for her life during the incident.
“I had the feeling that they could kill me,” she said, according to the reports.
Corriere della Sera also gave prominent coverage to the incident, focusing on Badhon’s work for women’s rights and her political activism.
Its report described Badhon as an actress with a career extending into Bollywood and noted that she was in Venice for The Difficult Bride. The newspaper reported that she was accused by the attackers of being a “July fighter”, referring to her support for the 2024 protests that eventually led to the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s government.
The report also highlighted Badhon’s account that she was with her brother and young nephew when the alleged attackers surrounded her, threw water and other objects at her, took her phone and subjected her to sexist and vulgar insults.
Corriere further reported that the Digos was investigating the incident and that the alleged perpetrators had been captured by surveillance cameras.
Secolo d’Italia described the incident as a political confrontation originating in Bangladesh and being brought to the Venice Film Festival.
The outlet reported Badhon’s allegation that she was surrounded, hit and insulted in front of her young nephew because of her support for the 2024 democratic protests against Sheikh Hasina.
Its report also focused on the contradiction between the themes of The Difficult Bride and the alleged treatment of its lead actress. The film explores social and family pressures on women, while Badhon was allegedly subjected to sexist abuse because of her political views while attending the festival.
The outlet argued that the Venice Film Festival should not become an extension of political conflicts from Bangladesh, stressing that political beliefs can be carried freely in Italy but intimidation and retaliation should not be imported into the country.
Left-wing Italian newspaper Il Manifesto also reported the incident, highlighting that Badhon was being applauded at the Lido for The Difficult Bride while allegedly being attacked by fellow Bangladeshis in Mestre.
The report said Badhon was surrounded and slapped by Bangladeshi nationals who accused her of being a “July fighter”. It also reported her claim that the attackers first approached her at her hotel before allegedly attacking her again in a park.
Il Manifesto reproduced Badhon’s account that water and other objects were thrown at her, her phone was taken and she was subjected to sexist insults.
The report also noted that the alleged attackers identified themselves as supporters of “Bangabandhu” and that the Venice Digos was investigating the incident.
Italy’s major news agency ANSA separately reported that Badhon was attacked in Mestre because of her political activism. ANSA said the actress was surrounded by Bangladeshi nationals who accused her of being a “July fighter” and reported her account that she was slapped, had water and other objects thrown at her, and had her phone taken.
La Repubblica also carried the incident, reporting Badhon’s allegation that the attackers were activists of the Awami League, which it described as the party that was in power from 2009 to 2024. The report said the alleged attackers accused her of supporting the 2024 anti-government uprising and that the incident was filmed and livestreamed on social media.
The incident was not limited to major national newspapers. Several other Italian media outlets also reported the alleged assault, including Fanpage and ImolaOggi.
ImolaOggi reported the attack while citing Il Gazzettino, saying Badhon had been beaten and insulted in Mestre after being accused of being a “July fighter”. It also reported that the Digos was investigating the incident and that the alleged attackers had been captured on cameras.
The breadth of the coverage means that the incident has moved beyond Bangladeshi social media and received attention in the Italian media environment during one of the country’s most internationally watched cultural events.
Across the reports, one point remains consistent: Italian authorities are investigating the incident.
The Digos is examining available video footage and other evidence to establish what happened and identify those involved. Italian media reports have also highlighted that some of the alleged attackers were visible in videos circulated online.
The incident has consequently drawn attention not only because of Badhon’s status as a prominent actress attending the Venice Film Festival, but also because of the alleged political motive behind the confrontation.
Badhon has maintained that she was targeted because of her participation in and support for the July 2024 uprising. She has also said that she would pursue legal action in Italy and that she would not be intimidated into silence.
The extensive Italian coverage has placed the alleged attack firmly within the spotlight of the Venice Film Festival, turning what began as a confrontation between Bangladeshi nationals in Mestre into a story receiving coverage across Italy’s mainstream and online media.