From his shy start as Emir Sarrafoglu in Adini Feriha Koydum, there hasn't been any looking back for Cagatay. Rising tall against the legal skirmishes that started in 2013 and now behind him, he had a major comeback with Medcezir, one of the top rated shows of the 2013 fall season.

Within months of its conclusion, Cagatay starred in the film Delibal, physically reinventing himself for the role by shedding 15 kg, growing his hair and taking drumming lessons.

Then came his action hero persona of Sarp Yilmaz in Icerde, and his mature enaction of a fearless police officer belies his young age of 25. His months long preparations for the fight sequences are evident in how physically dexterous he is.

Netflix's Hakan Muhafiz demanded a younger Cagatay, with none of the innate finesse of Sarp, and once again he physically transformed himself to believably essay a character who portrays the journey of becoming a hero tasked with being the savior of Istanbul. 

​This short trailer by CUNA captures the incredible talent that Cagatay is, in less than two minutes.  Enjoy!!

​Article (c) CUNA

​January 14th marks the 10th year anniversary of the broadcast of the inaugural episode of Adini Feriha Koydum, a widely accalimed Medyapim production that aired on Show TV from January 14 2011 – June 29, 2012. It has often been one of the first Turkish dizis to enter new international markets beyond the traditional Middle Eastern buyers of Turkish fare.
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In October 2015, it was the first Turkish series to air in India, a late adopter compared to its neighboring Pakistan, which licensed the show in 2013. Latin America was the next region where it broadcast 2015 – 2016. The show has left its deep mark in every territory it entered, evidenced by the immense fan reaction to the heart touching story of the young couple Emir and Feriha played by Cagatay Ulusoy and Hazal Kaya, respectively. 

PLOT
Feriha (Hazal Kaya), is the ambitious and intellectually gifted daughter of a maintenance man, who lives with his family in the basement of an apartment compex in an upper-class neighborhood of Istanbul. Residents in the building never allow Feriha to forget that she is the daughter of the lowly help, even though her mother supports her dreams. Feriha earns a full scholarship to a prestigious, private university, where she meets and falls for a handsome and rich young man, Emir (Cagatay Ulusoy), who has his own inner wounds.

For fear of being treated as an outcast, Feriha feeds the misconception that she is from a rich family as well. The magnetic love between Emir and Feriha cannot be denied until he discovers the truth which exposes the chasm between their socioeconomic and cultural values.

​​As their paths cross again and again, neither able to move away from the other, Adini Feriha Koydum is a coming of age story, where the protagonists push the boundaries of preordained paths on the power of their love.

A HERO’S JOURNEY
A few months ago, we published a post on North America TEN, that discussed how all of Cagatay’s past roles follow a hero’s journey, as defined by Joseph Campbell in is 1949 book “The Hero With The Thousand Faces“. He says “A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man.” Based on this definition and other prior work that captures Campbell’s framework, we created the following graphic:

How does Emir Sarrafoglu fall into this framework in how he lives his journey with Feriha in Adini Feriha Koydum? What themes does the show cover that it appeals to such a wide demographic, from young to old, across so many cultures? Why does this young love story still resonate so deeply with hearts looking for love? The rest of the post will try to answer these, and more, as a 10th year tribute to this iconic production. 

For the rest of the article, please to this original post on our parent site North America TEN.