Mick Hartley

The subversive power of a soap opera in Saudi Arabia:

A Turkish soap opera featuring an independent fashion designer and her amazingly supportive and attractive husband is emptying the streets whenever it’s on and has more than doubled the number of Saudis visiting Turkey this summer.

Millions of people — especially women, apparently — are tuning in nightly to find out whether the couple will stay together or be torn apart by jealousies and old flames.

But “Noor,” the story of a multi-generational, upper-class Turkish family, has also sparked a backlash. The show has become the subject of angry Friday sermons in this strict Islamic kingdom, and the country’s chief cleric recently issued a fatwa calling it “decadent” and sinful to watch.

“Noor” has had such a deep influence because, unlike American or Mexican soap operas broadcast here, it is about a Muslim family living in a Muslim country. The show is also dubbed in an Arabic dialect, not classical Arabic, which makes it easier to understand and feels more intimate to viewers.

And then, there’s that husband.

The blue-eyed, blond Muhannad, played by Kivanc Tatlitu, a 24-year-old Turkish actor and model, is tall, handsome, romantic, respectful and treats his wife, Noor — the title character — as both a love object and an equal.

“Saudi women fantasize about what they’re lacking,” said Amira Kashgari, an assistant linguistics professor at King Abdul Aziz University who writes about social issues for al-Watan newspaper. “They are almost obsessed with this show because of the way he interacts with and treats his wife.”

Saudi Arabia, a deeply patriarchal society, has few role models for powerful, independent women. The kingdom does not allow women guardianship over themselves, whatever their age. They are not allowed to drive and cannot travel without the permission of a male guardian, sometimes their sons.

A powerful independent woman? Dear me. Here’s what the The grand mufti of Saudi Arabia, Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh, had to say:

“It is not permitted to look at these serials or watch them. They contain so much evil; they destroy people’s ethics and are against our values,” said the mufti during the closing ceremony of a forum, which took place in Riyadh on Friday. He added that these “malicious” Turkish soap operas corrupt individuals and spread vice in society.

“Any TV station that airs them is against God and His Messenger (peace be upon him). These are serials of immorality. They are prepared by people who are specialists in crime and error, people who invite men and women to the devil.”

And now it’s turning violent:

JEDDAH: Residents of a village in Baha region recently smashed their satellite dishes following a scathing Friday sermon in which the imam spoke against Turkish soap operas “Noor” and “Lost Years”, which have in recent months kept the entire Kingdom fixed to their screens.

Following the Friday sermon, the local tribal chief in the village of Al-Hajr, 70 kms from the southwestern city of Baha, smashed his satellite dish and called on people to follow suit, Al-Eqtisadiah daily reported.