
© YouTube
Engin Altan Düzyatan in and as Ertugrul Gazi
Diliris Ertugrul, Ertugrul Gazi, Resurrection: Ertugrul
If you haven't been violating lockdown laws and are privileged enough to have a home, chances are that you come across these words a few times everyday - depending on just how many hours you spend on social media. Personally, I'm nearing a whole twenty-four - but that's a story for another day.
The Turkish show
Ertugrul is based in 13th century Anatolia and tells the story prior to the establishment of the Ottoman Empire. It illustrates the struggle of Ertugrul Gazi, father of the empire's founder, Osman. It is often called the Turkish
Game of Thrones, and for good reason - you'll find
everything except dragons and sex: the castles, the sceneries, the clothes, the sword-clashing, the thrill, hell, even a starting score just as exhilarating. I often see my fifty-something parents bobbing their heads to the title theme just as I would for
GOT - and it is cute as hell.
The show has taken Pakistan by a storm, breaking multiple YouTube records since its Urdu translation was released, and is now becoming the go-to Muslim household show to watch in India as well. It took me a hot minute to bring my snobby
Game Of Thrones nose to the ground and watch the show, but I caved,
and man, oh man.
The Resurrection of the Show
Ertugrul was released in Turkey in 2014, and became the most sought-after entertainment, spreading to Azerbaijan, for its shared history. Recently, Pakistan's Prime Minister visited Turkey and heard about the mad fandom around the show, and decided to work to bring the show to Pakistan by getting it dubbed in Urdu, and releasing it on the first of Ramadan, after which it spread like wildfire in the South Asian Muslim community.
Turkey, Pakistan and Malaysia have decided to come together to fight the rampant Islamophobia in the rest of the world, particularly the West, and wanted to bring forth content that attempts to nullify the damage done through almost every film and Netflix series one can watch today.
Comment: Ertugrul is a bit too popular for Egypt, where it is
banned by religious decree - they're worried it might help Erdogan reestablish the Ottoman Empire, it seems. More likely, they've watched the show and seen that it actually promotes real values. Children might grow up being able to recognize tyranny when they see it. Can't have that.
You can watch the first two seasons in English on TRT's YouTube channel, starting here:
Comment: "...the New York Times is selling you misery for misery's sake." It is also selling newspapers for a profit that misery, fear, and pulling heartstrings from first-hand tragedy encourage.