November 7, 2006 (2006-11-07) – May 12, 2009 (2009-05-12)
Binbir Gece (English: One Thousand and One Nights) is a Turkish soap opera revolving around four main characters: Sehrazat, Onur, Kerem and Bennu. The story is loosely based on the story of One Thousand and One Nights, better known as Arabian Nights. It stars Halit Ergenç as Onur, Bergüzar Korel as Şehrazat, Tardu Flordun as Kerem and Ceyda Düvenci as Bennu.
The title is the name of the story better known to the English-speaking world as Arabian Nights. The film's storyline is loosely based on the story, containing references thereto.[2]
Şehrazat is an aspiring architect who is in desperate need for money to pay for the treatment of her son, Kaan, who is suffering from leukemia. After pleading to borrow money from several sources, she is stuck with her boss, Onur, who agrees to give her the money she needs for Kaan's treatment on the condition that she spends a night with him.
Binbir Gece was a hit in Chile, where its success resulted in many Chileans naming their babies Onur (boys) & Sheherazade (girls). It played in the United States, Colombia, Argentina and Brazil. It was a hit in Russia in the Turkish Drama Category.[3][4][5][6][7][8] The show was picked up by Netflix in the United States, but curiously only the first 49 episodes as of August 2017.[9] This has infuriated a number of Netflix viewers that watched the series not knowing it would end abruptly at episode 49, leaving many matters unanswered. A writing campaign is underway.[10]
The series became a primetime hit in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia and Macedonia as well as in Romania, Albania, Bulgaria, Slovakia and Greece.[11] It increased the popularity of Istanbul as a tourist destination among Serbs and led to a greater interest in learning Turkish.[12]
The series originally aired from November 7, 2006 to May 12, 2009 on Kanal D. It aired in more than 56 countries.[13][4] The series aired in Chile on Mega from March 3, 2014 until January 4, 2015,[14] in Indonesia on antv as "Shehrazat : Seribu Satu Malam" from August 3, 2015,[15] and in Brazil on Band from March 9, 2015 until September 15, 2015.[16] On March 1, 2021, the series premiered on Nagorik in Bangladesh as Sahasra Ek Rajani. On the same day, it was also made available for streaming on Bongo BD.[17][18]
The major TV awards ceremony in Turkey (often dubbed as the Turkish Oscars), the Altın Kelebek, (Golden Butterfly Awards) resulted in three wins for the series.
