Diving into dizi: The growing appeal of Turkish drama

With the pandemic still very much lurking around, and every other day still carrying that threat of overshadowing the little hope that the world has that everything will soon be okay, watching a television series is an excellent way to escape the annoying realities of life.

Since 2020, people have been consuming different kinds of content on the internet to pass time. Korean dramas were all the rage and became a global phenomenon that nobody saw coming.

However, other international dramas are starting to gain global recognition thanks to the help of social media platforms, most especially TikTok. TV shows that one might never see or hear about nor even think about watching are given the chance to shine as users show snippets of them along with their English subtitles.

From there, one is given a glimpse of another world; another culture. This is exactly the case with Turkish dramas.

Called “dizi” in Turkey, Turkish dramas are slowly gaining traction outside of its homeland and making its way across various parts of the globe, including the Philippines. It is not as watched compared to Korean dramas, but they have unique storylines that are sure to hook you in along with its very talented and insanely attractive actors and actresses.

Turkish dramas are a league of their own. Similar to K-dramas, they are steeped in tradition and are very expressive in showing their love for their culture. The run time per episode is not for the faint of heart as it is about two hours long or more, giving viewers more compared to Western shows that don’t usually go beyond the one-hour mark.

With the use of local talents such as directors, actors and the Turkish culture itself, it is no surprise how dizi is starting to grow increasingly popular in different parts of the world.

One of the biggest appeals of Turkish dramas, or perhaps its most gravitating factor, is its ability to entertain and tap on the audience’s emotions.

Divi’s widespread popularity that is slowly sweeping across the globe is showcasing a drastic reform of mass culture and challenging the domineering influence of American pop culture in the 21st century.

Compared to American shows that seem to glorify excessiveness to the point of almost gluttony, dizi focuses more on the heartfelt aspects of the story and is more communal than one would expect to see in a Turkish drama.

Everyone can hop on the train of loving dizi as it is not as intimidating as one may perceive it to be. Two hours can sound grueling but once the story hooks you in, it is hard to lean away and not fall in love with the story along with its characters.

With the rise of international TV shows and movies, Bong Joon Ho, director of the Academy Award winning film “Parasite,” his words ring truer than ever before: “Once you have overcome that one-inch-tall barrier of subtitles, you will introduced to so many more amazing films.” This might be the time where the world will finally get to see more of each other than ever before.