Kara Sevda

This is one Turkish drama series you don't want to miss. It's such magnificent, masterful storytelling. Great, great, great all the way. Kara Sevda (Endless Love) boasts a compelling storyline, an excellent cast, lovely sights and sounds, twists, turns, and everything ingredient you need for a powerful drama. The series tackled several real issues which made it so much more of a life drama. Love, Hate, Betrayal, Family Loyalty, Friendship and Brotherhood, Blackmail, Treachery, Lies and Deceit, Emotional and Psychological abuse, Possessiveness and Narcissism, Power Drunkenness, Corruption, Money, and Abuse of Power are just a wee tip of the many issues thrown up by this series. You have to watch it to understand.

But, fair warning. Once you start, you won't want to stop. You are in for the long haul. At 2 seasons and 74 episodes, you need to be committed and patient to enjoy this but trust me, you won’t be disappointed. It’s a great watch!

Also, you might find the English translations of the title weird. The series has a love triangle at its center. Endless Love would be referring to Nihan and Kemal's love story whereas, Dark Love would be referring to Emir's 'love' for Nihan as well as Zeynep and Emir's relationship.

About This Series

Kara Sevda is a 2015 Turkish drama series written by Ozlem Yilmaz, Burcu Gorgun Toptas, and Anil Eke. Produced by Kerem Catay/Ay Yapim and directed by Hilal Saral, the series cast includes Burak Ozcivit, Neslihan Atagul, Kaan Urgancioglu, Melisa Pamuk, Hazal Kucukkose, Zerrin Tekindor, Kerem Alisik, Orhan Guner, Zeyno Eracar, Nece Baykent, Kursat Alniacik, Baris Alpaykut, Ruzgar Aksoy, Ali Burak Ceylan, Metin Coskun, Burak Sergen, Ugur Aslan, Arhan Alpay, and Arven Beren among others.

Synopsis

Fate brings Kemal Soydere and Nihan Sezin together when they board the same bus. Though from different sides of the social divide, their budding friendship grows into a strong love bond which is disrupted when Nihan rejects his marriage proposal and marries the rich business mogul, Emir Kozcuoglu instead. Kemal is heartbroken and leaves for Zonguldak where he pursues an engineering career. He returns to Istanbul 5 years later as the country representative to pursue a business deal with Kozcuoglu Holdings. Fatefully, he and Nihan meet again and their strong love bond draws them to each other once again. They find themselves entangled in a web of lies, deceit, betrayal, blackmail, secrecy, and treachery. Untangling it leads to dreadful circumstances, family feuds, murder, and destruction wreaked by the evil Emir.

Nihan and Kemal must fight for their very lives, their truncated love and their loved ones, and any who stray into the Kozcuoglus path as no one is safe from their venom, wiles, trickery, and corrupting and destroying influences. Through myriad battles, scares, tears, hurt, and upsets, they finally find their forever but the mentally unstable Emir is determined to destroy their happiness at all costs. Kemal eventually has to make the ultimate sacrifice to ensure the safety of his family and all they hold dear.

Social Relevance

This series is a Life drama and hence tackles a whole gamut of social issues like Family Loyalty and Sacrifice; Art; Mining and Construction; Abiding Love and Relationships; Suicide and Mental Health; Work and Workplace Safety, Murder; Betrayal and Blackmail; Fear and Tyranny; Secrets and Lies; Parenting; Narcissism, Possessiveness; Stalking, Invasion of Privacy; Women's Rights; Spousal Abuse; Physical, Emotional, Psychological Abuse and Control, Official Corruption and so much more.

Conclusion and Major Takeaways

Turkish dramas are replete with such rich storytelling and Kara Sevda is no exception. It weaves such a powerfully beautiful love story into the fabric of a larger story where lives intertwine with varying consequences. The social issues it throws up surrounding the treatment of women, official bribery and corruption, blackmail, abuse; suicide, and self-harm are just a few of the social issues this series highlights.