Nurgul Yesilcay is one of the most beautiful, bright, and talented actresses in Turkish cinema and theater. She gained worldwide fame after one of the main roles in the incredibly successful historical series about the Ottoman Empire – “The Magnificent Century. Empire of Kösem.
Nurgul Yesilchay is one of the most highly paid and sought-after actresses in modern Turkish cinema and is also known not only in her country but also abroad, thanks to the popularity of films and television projects with her participation.
basic information
Date of birth March 26, 1976 (age 46)
Birthplace Afyonkarahisar, Turkey
Aries zodiac sign
Citizenship Turkey
Height 165
Marital status Divorced
Children Son
Activities Theater and film actress
Awards Golden Boll Award for Best Actress (2005), Golden Orange Award for Best Actress (2008)
Biography Nurgul Yesilchay
Nurgül Yeşilçay was born in western Turkey in the small town of Afyonkarahisar, and then the family moved to Izmir. Nurgul’s childhood passed here.
Little is known about Nurgul’s childhood. Her parents have always been quite wealthy, so it can be assumed that they planned a successful career and a settled future for their daughter. It is because of this, unlike most other young Turkish actors and actresses, whose path to cinema lies through the modeling business, Yesilcay received special education at a prestigious university.
After graduating from school, Nurgul entered the Anatolian Theater Institute – which is one of the most prestigious educational institutions in Turkey. But in addition to studying at a university approved by her parents, she also attended classes at the acting school at Eskisehir University. Despite the prerequisites for a successful career, her natural artistry and craving for the stage turned out to be stronger than prudent parental plans, and the girl chose a career in cinema and theater.
After university, the girl could join the best theater groups in the country. Nurgul almost from the very beginning was lucky to get leading roles in the theater. The actress played a lot on stage, including in the famous performances Hamlet, where she appeared in the role of Ophelia, and in A Streetcar Named Desire, in the role of Blanche Dubois. Nurgul Yesilchay left the theater solely because of the rapidly developing career as a film actress, but even now she does not forget about her invaluable theatrical experience.
Film career
Nurgul first appeared on the screens when she was only 23 years old – she took part in a television project as a guest, but not an actress. After that, the rapid development of her career in the film industry begins. The first light comedy with her participation “Everything will be fine” was released in 1998.
For three years, Nurgul played in the family TV series Second Spring, embodying the image of the heroine Gulsum. Nurgul was lucky to work on the same stage together with the star of Turkish cinema – Turkan Shoray and with the recognized handsome Ozan Güven.
In 2001, there were shootings in the film “Waterfall” about the military coup of the 60s in Turkey and the melodrama about the life of models – “90-60-90”.
This was followed by work in the adventure action movie The Mummy on the Run, the family drama The Vine Mansion, the melodrama Angel Island and The Temporary Bride, the comedy The Troubled Sister-in-Law, the melodramas Ezo’s Bride and Adam’s Train.
In 2007, another high-profile project stood on her career path – the drama “On the Edge of Paradise”, a joint Turkish-German production. The actress played the role of a rebel student, the daughter of a prostitute working in Germany. The film was duly appreciated by European film critics, received the Cannes Film Festival and the European Film Academy awards for the best screenplay.
By 2008, Nurgul Yesilchay was already a sought-after actress among directors and fell in love with Turkish viewers, and the comedy “7 Husbands for Hurmuz”, the psychological drama “Conscience” and the ironic picture “Chinara” further consolidated the popularity of the actress.
In 2010, the action-packed melodrama Love and Punishment was shown on Turkish television, where Nurgul Yesilchay played the main role in a duet with Murat Yildirim. This multi-part film made the actress famous abroad, as many countries bought the rights to show the series.
Following their international success, Yeşilçay became one of the highest-paid actresses in Turkey. The actress continued to act a lot: the melodrama “Sultan”, the action movie “Red Love”, the crime film “Galip Dervish” came out. In 2014, Nurgul starred in the thriller The Murder, the comedy sitcom Coming Soon, the drama Night, and the melodrama Shattered.
In 2016, the actress received an invitation from the creators of the popular rating television series “The Magnificent Century. Empire of Kösem ”, which ran for four seasons and was broadcast in 50 countries around the world. In the second season of the series, which received international recognition, Nurgul played the main character – Kösem Sultan, the kidnapped daughter of a Venetian merchant Anastasia, who was destined to become the wife of Sultan Ahmed I and one of the most influential women politicians in Turkish history, the mother of three sultans of the Ottoman Empire. The actress replaced Beren Saat, who played the young Kösem in the first season.
Now in the film career of the actress came a break. In 2017, Nurgul completed work on the project “The Magnificent Century. Kösem Empire” and has not yet appeared in new projects.
Personal life
In 2004, Nurgul Yesilchay married Cem Ezer, an actor who is 17 years older than her. They were married for six years and became parents to their son Osman Nezhat. But even the appearance of a child could not strengthen the union of two very different people. Her husband was jealous of Nurgul’s professional success and wanted her to leave her job, Nurgul, in turn, was not going to quit her favorite business. As a result, in 2010, Yesilchay and Yozir divorced.
The beautiful actress never went unnoticed by men, and soon Nurgul’s personal life changed again – she had a new lover – director Tolga Karacelik. But this time, Nurgul Yesilchay is in no hurry to legitimize these relations, having learned the mistake of the first marriage. Lovers spend a lot of time together, they prefer a quiet relaxing holiday to secular parties. The actress herself calls this union a “guest marriage” since Karachelik and Yesilchay live separately.
Interesting Facts
- The name of the actress literally translates from Turkish as “green tea”, so the parents gave their daughter the name Nurgul, which means “fragrant” or “fragrant”, so Nurgul Yesilchay means “fragrant green tea”.
- Yesilchay is a talented artist and has already gained a reputation in the world of painting with her own paintings.
- She has her own Instagram page, where the actress pleases fans with photos and personal life. Especially Yesilchay loves to take selfies.
- To preserve the beauty of her face and figure, Nurgul constantly trains and keeps to diet.
- In an interview, Nurgul stated that she would never have had a relationship with a married person, as this brings suffering to all parties.
- The actress also stated in an interview that she would not follow her man, check his correspondence, pages on social networks, even if she suspected treason. She trusts her loved one, besides, it is enough for her to love, even without reciprocity.
Filmography
- 2002 – Mansion with vines
- 2006 – “Ezo’s Bride”
- 2007 – Adam’s Trains
- 2007 – “On the edge of paradise”
- 2008 – “Conscience”
- 2009 – “7 Husbands for Hurmuz”
- 2010 – Love and Punishment
- 2011 – “Chinara”
- 2012 – “Sultan”
- 2013 – “Red Love”
- 2014 – Murder
- 2014-2016 – “Shattered”
- 2016 – “Second Chance”
- 2016-2017 – “Magnificent century. Kösem Empire»