ŞAHİN IRMAK & ASENA TUĞAL
ŞAHİN IRMAK
HIS MEETING STORY: I had my eye on him when I first saw him on television. Then we met through mutual friends.
FIRST IMPRESSION: I thought I wish I had a boyfriend and it happened. She looked very beautiful and cool, I was very impressed.
FIRST APPOINTMENT: I got his number. Then he said, ‘Can we eat menemen together in the morning?’ I sent him a message and we met for dinner that evening. I was praying that he wouldn’t reject it, but he didn’t.
MEETING POINT: We met at Ulus Sunset. I really like the view and the cuisine.
THE MOMENT YOU CANNOT FORGET: I wanted that night to never end.
ASENA TUĞAL
MEETING STORY: We met through mutual friends. Then one day we went out to dinner alone and from that day on we never parted.
FIRST IMPRESSION: It made me laugh so hard, I laughed all day. I was laughing non-stop, and that never changed. Also, he was so sincere that I can’t explain it. His heart was very pure and I said, “I hope this is not an illusion.”
FIRST APPOINTMENT: Of course it came from Şahin, because if it were up to me, I couldn’t make an appointment even if 1500 years had passed. Although I seem friendly and social, I am shy when it comes to love and dating. We texted for a while and decided to meet.
MEETING POINT: We met at Sunset. Şahin chose the venue, but it is my favorite restaurant in Istanbul, I can say that he made the right choice.
THE MOMENT YOU CANNOT FORGET: I remember every minute, every sentence. Not a single minute of it has been erased from my memory yet.
CEMAL HÜNAL & LALE CANGAL
CEMAL HÜNAL
MEETING STORY: I saw Lale for the first time while walking around with her friends in front of Narmanlı Apartment in Nişantaşı. She was wearing a short black dress and tall boots. It is impossible to see the dark red lipstick on those lips and not remember it. She was very beautiful, daring and had a life energy that was difficult to keep up with. She is still the most beautiful creature I have seen since that day.
FIRST IMPRESSION: He didn’t even notice me that day.
FIRST DATE: We met a few weeks later at Teoman’s party. I was so surprised. He came to me when I least expected it and introduced himself. He has been in charge of the reins ever since. We left the party together and I took this vegetarian beauty to the Lale soup restaurant to drink tripe.
MEETING POINT: We first met in Cihangir. It was the longest walk I’ve ever taken in my life… Not counting the ones that followed.
THE MOMENT YOU CANNOT FORGET: I will never forget the life energy and happiness of existence I felt that day, and how I fell in love with the girl who chatted with every stray animal she saw.
LALE CANGAL
MEETING STORY: We were at a mutual friend’s terrace in Cihangir. At that moment, it was as if a spotlight was placed on Cemal. My eye got stuck badly. I went to him.
-Hi, I’m Lale,
-I’m Cemal…
-Oh, why?
-It’s my grandfather’s name.
FIRST IMPRESSION: I remember being surprised when I heard the name for the first time. I thought of many names until we met. I wouldn’t wait for Cemal. What a beautiful name it is! Then the topic came up from London. I had just returned. It smoked in my nose. He also just returned. There was so much to talk about. His first role was ‘Messenger’. The movie wasn’t released yet. And horses. Love for animals was a trait I was looking for in my dream man. ‘Hooray’ I said to myself.
FIRST APPOINTMENT: The meeting proposal came from Cemal, but we kept each other waiting for a long time. I played violin in his studio. He opened the door; cats, birds, dogs, cartoons… I had entered the existence of Noah’s Ark in an apartment building. Also, his knowledge of classical music was very impressive. He knew what to say.
MEETING POINT: Our first meetings were at Narmanlı Apartmanı and Cihangir. I was living there at that time. Our houses were very close. We would also meet and go horseback riding.
THE MOMENT YOU CANNOT FORGET: The most unforgettable memories for me were in Antakya. Cemal was acting in a TV series. We were staying in a shanty house with a barn underneath. We were picking mulberries and riding horses all day long. Inside nature, without people… We are still far from the city right now. With our cat, birds, Maya (wolf dog) and our son. Unforgettable moments continue to be photographed in my mind.
Production and Interview: Ece Üremez
Photo: Nurdan Usta
We thought that the excitement of the first meeting would be completely different, and specially for Valentine’s Day, we photographed five famous couples who made you say ‘There is still love’ at the first points where their stories started. We present to you the interpretation of what happened on the first date, with the difference between men and women, accompanied by their very special moments.
BURAK DENİZ & BUSRA DEVELİ
BURAK DENİZ
HIS MEETING STORY: We met at a workshop for the series. We bonded with each other during our pair work and spent every moment together. By the way, neither he nor I had any idea that things would come to this. I guess these things happen when you don’t even think about it… It was so much fun, so elegant, so beautiful. That’s why it didn’t take long for me to be impressed.
FIRST IMPRESSION: I wouldn’t say the first time I saw her, let’s say the first time I really looked at her face… I remember thinking how beautiful she was. It struck me how different it was. She was full of beauty. Büşra reads a lot of books, her ideas and outlook on life are very different… Ask questions and sit and watch.
FIRST APPOINTMENT: There was no specific appointment location. Are such things left? The whole group would come to me after the work and we would continue to talk and think about the characters. I gave him an Emrah Serbes book as a gift, which must have impressed him so much that I didn’t have to say anything.
MEETING POINT: We chose this place because we always enjoy being in Karaköy.
THE MOMENT YOU CANNOT FORGET: While the series was continuing, there was a break for a few days, and we went to Kabak together. That holiday is a memory that I still cannot forget. We both wanted it to never end.
BUSRA DEVELİ
MEETING STORY: We first met while working on the TV series ‘Tatlı Küçük Yalancılar’, at Bahar Kerimoğlu’s acting workshop.
FIRST IMPRESSION: When I first saw him, I thought he had a great sense of humor. When we worked together for the first time, I looked at her face very carefully, her eyelashes and the mole on her arm caught my attention.
FIRST APPOINTMENT: There was no proposal, in fact, it was more of a moment when I noticed the interaction between us. One day when we all gathered together, he bought me a book and gave it to me. At that moment, I felt the interaction between us; I thought it was a very kind gesture, I said, what a sweet boy.
MEETING POINT: We did not have a special meeting place, we were all hanging out together, everything developed over time.
THE MOMENT YOU CANNOT FORGET: We went on vacation to Kabak because I had a three-day repo, and in that chaos, there was a space where we could breathe together. This brought us closer to each other. I can say that we both came back from that holiday in a different way, and everything increased and increased after that. It still is.
ANIL ALTAN & PELIN AKİL
ANIL ALTAN
MEETING STORY: Actually, we both starred in the same TV series, but at different times. But we ran into each other in our friend groups. There was even a long period of time when we didn’t communicate until I couldn’t keep quiet about his Instagram videos and he couldn’t keep quiet about my Instagram videos. At that moment, I realized right in my head that he was fun, creative and also smart. The next thing is known; Messages from Pelin every day.
FIRST IMPRESSION: I still say this without getting tired, that I was and continue to be impressed by her eyes and beautiful mouth structure. She’s beautiful even when she’s not smiling or even when she’s sad. Even when we weren’t very close, I would constantly show my close friends photos of Pelin and make them angry.
FIRST APPOINTMENT: Actually, this is a very long story, but in short; The first messages started when Pelin was abroad and she said to me, ‘Come too,’ but I said, ‘When are you coming back?’ We laughed a lot when we got the answer ‘tomorrow’ to the question.
MEETING POINT: The moment we first met, we were both so excited and happy that we spent a lot of time in the car as we kept missing the roads laughing and grinning stupidly at each other. Then we decided to go to Mirror, which was the only place open at that hour.
THE MOMENT YOU CANNOT FORGET: That day, I made Pelin wait for about 10 minutes. Maybe more. I needed to look nice, so I did a few sets of push-ups and weights at home. Okay, okay, I showed my mom the few t-shirts and trousers I tried on and asked, ‘So how did it turn out now?’ I had questions… After all, the first person you will meet is Pelin Akil.
PELIN AKIL
MEETING STORY: We both acted in the same TV series at different times. He came after my story was finished. We met when I went to my old set to visit my friends, but nothing happened between us at that time. We were friends. Then, when we started meeting more often and getting to know each other, sparks and butterflies…
FIRST IMPRESSION: ‘What a talented and beautiful child he is. I thought, “His path is clear and he will come to good places in his work.” When we started chatting, I saw how close our sense of humor was. We made each other laugh a lot.
FIRST APPOINTMENT: That’s exactly what happened. I was traveling abroad. Anıl and I were also following each other on Instagram. I was laughing out loud on holiday at the funny videos he took of himself. Even when my friends were going out at night, I was sitting at the hotel and commenting on his videos. He was browsing my page at the time. Then we started talking on the phone. We even had a funny correspondence. I said, ‘I wish you were here too.’ He said, “How long are you there? Maybe I’ll come.” I said I would return the next day. He said, ‘I wish you had called me just when you were returning.’
MEETING POINT: I picked him up from his home the day I returned to Istanbul. We went to Suadiye Mirror. The sparks of our first love started there. I don’t remember why we chose that place, it was late. It was open and “it’s an airy, beautiful, scenic, pleasant place,” Anıl said. It was my first time there, I’m glad we went there, even though Anıl was with me, anywhere would be the best place for me.
THE MOMENT YOU CANNOT FORGET: I don’t remember what I was wearing, but I remember every moment like it was yesterday, down to what Anıl was wearing… It’s been three years, but when I think about it, I still get excited. He had a very fresh, fit, confident and fun atmosphere. Its scent is also in my nose.
ENGİN HEPILERİ & BEYZA ŞEKERCİ
ENGİN HEPILERİ
MEETING STORY: We met on the set of the TV series ‘Revenge’.
FIRST IMPRESSION: I thought he was a hard-working, disciplined, extremely detail-oriented person in his work, a friendly and pure-hearted person.
FIRST DATE: We had already met many times with our large group of friends. The long friendship led to the first date after a while.
MEETING POINT: We found ourselves alone while sitting in a cafe with our friends to go to a party.
THE MOMENT YOU CANNOT FORGET: What remains in my mind is a beautiful heart, a beautiful smile and getting lost in deep, meaningful eyes.
BEYZA ŞEKERCİ
MEETING STORY: We met on the set of the TV series ‘Revenge’.
FIRST IMPRESSION: Engin Hepileri is a very clear, sincere, energetic, very disciplined and experienced actor.
FIRST APPOINTMENT: First of all, Engin was a very good friend and ours was a friendship established within a group of friends consisting of wonderful people. The appointment took place much later.
MEETING POINT: We met for the first time in a cafe. Actually, we went there in large numbers, but then everyone left and we continued to sit and talk.
THE MOMENT YOU CANNOT FORGET: I saw a huge heart in him that no one else could look at. And he is too big and confident to compete with anyone’s courage.