Grade: 3.5/5
Genre: Sufi
Seasons: 2
Ages: Family
“Ertugrul” lite is how I would classify this sufi drama. A soul searching Turkish series about the life and transformation of Yunus Emre, a dervish, Turkish poet and eventually a sufi. It begins with Yunus Emre traveling to Nallihan where he is appointed as a Qazi (Judge) to rule over the town affairs. He is stubborn and follows the rule of law without a fault. His encounter with Taptuk Emre , a sufi master, at his dervish monastery begins Yunus’s fascination of the dervish way of life, and his journey to become one. It takes time, effort and a challenge but under the guidance and tutelage of Taptuk Emre, Yunus is able to shed his ego and strict way of life and embrace dervish’ism (if that’s a word :). “In the year 1991, the UNESCO General Conference collectively passed a resolution declaring 1991, the 750th anniversary of the Yunus’s birth; “The International Yunus Emre Year”.
The show is a bit pedantic at times but that is done deliberately to portray the essence of the dervish way of life. It is not the caliber of “Resurrection Ertugrul” (the highly successful Turkish drama) and doesn’t pretend to be even though it is made by the same creator. It is it’s own story and evolves at it’s own pace. For those who prefer something more fast paced, this is not your cup of tea but can be watched while having a cup of tea.
