Engin Şenkan on His Role as Çetin in ‘Loveberry’ – Exclusive Interview

Loveberry is actually the story of an educated, urban woman who stands on her own feet, and her family. What were the aspects of Loveberry that impressed you the most and made you want to accept the project?

Engin Şenkan: We all have some understanding  that parental and societal pressure is very strong in rural life. However, the misconception is that this pressure only exists in rural families. It’s often thought that family pressure, especially from the father, isn’t as strong in educated, urban families. The truth is, the pressure put on children or young people within a family exists at every level of society, regardless of social status.

What really struck me is that in many relationships, there’s an emotional burden we don’t openly talk about but still place on others. What’s more interesting is that in these close relationships, the love bond is so strong that we tend to view the person imposing the burden as cruel, but in reality, they’re not even aware of what they’re doing. Likewise, the one carrying the burden becomes a sort of willing slave, unaware of how this load is affecting their life. The underlying dynamic of these relationships really moved me. I didn’t see Çetin as a villain. He’s just like all of us, he’s a very good father, but he also has a ruthless side to him.

Engin Şenkan: “We’ve tried to portray relationships that are not bound to a specific time, social class, or country.”

Çetin is a retired soldier, a strict and demanding father, but also harsh towards those who hurt his daughters. He seems to be especially harsh toward Zuhal. How would you describe Çetin? What traits did you focus on the most while bringing this character to life?

Engin Şenkan: Çetin is a father who loves his daughters so deeply that he would give his own life for them, and he completely loses his sense of reason when someone hurts them. At the same time, he is emotional, deeply in love with his wife and hasn’t been able to move on from her even after her death. Due to the unfortunate event they experienced, he still holds his daughter Zuhal responsible for his wife’s death. As a result, despite loving her dearly, he has fully accepted, without question or hesitation, that Zuhal has devoted her entire life to the family. On the other hand, Zuhal has also taken on this role as her life’s duty.

Çetin is also a soldier; he is used to living by strict rules. He is the kind of man who would set a timer and wait for his daughter when she leaves the house. While reading and working on the character of Çetin I tried to understand both his strengths and weaknesses. Çetin is, in fact, like all of us: in some ways, he’s someone to look up to, but in others, he’s ruthless.

Çetin and Zuhal’s father-daughter relationship is heavy, even difficult to watch at times. Çetin holds Zuhal responsible for his wife’s death and believes she shouldn’t have a life of her own. What thoughts does Zuhal and her father’s relationship bring to your mind regarding father-daughter relationships?

Engin Şenkan: First of all, I’m a father of two daughters myself, and naturally, when I think of them, my heart melts, and I get emotional. But in Çetin’s story, Zuhal is also the daughter who, unfortunately, caused her mother’s death. I believe that Çetin, unconsciously, without any intention of taking revenge on Zuhal, has placed her in the role of the family’s mother. And poor Zuhal, feeling responsible for the tragedy, has willingly taken on this role. There’s a very delicate balance in their relationship. Çetin has placed his daughter in the role of the mother of the house, but he doesn’t expect her to replace his wife. He’s simply a man who, after the sudden and devastating loss of his wife, withdrew into himself, built walls around his home, and, in his own way, took his daughters into that space for protection. But of course, at some point, the daughters who are trapped inside those walls will eventually want to find their own freedom.

Loveberry is a series that effectively portrays how even educated and working urban women can give up on living their own lives due to the dynamics within a household. It also features a strong family drama. Where do you think Loveberry resonates most with the audience?

Engin Şenkan: In families, women can live under intense pressure, whether from their father, siblings, or spouse. But if these meaningless rules and pressures were not the case, we would see the deep affection and love people actually have for one another. However, in the course of life, we cover these feelings up. Fathers don’t take off their angry mask, nor do they let go of their rules. The children can’t see his love or reach him. Without truly speaking or understanding each other’s real emotions, people build small barriers between themselves, and eventually, even if you want to touch the person behind the wall, it becomes impossible. As viewers, we can see the characters’ mistakes from a third-person perspective, but in our own lives, we often can’t recognize our own.

Loveberry will be introduced to the world at one of the most important content markets, MIPCOM. What would you like to say to your viewers in Türkiye and around the world?

Engin Şenkan: I hope they enjoy our story. We’ve tried to portray relationships that are not bound to a specific time, social class, or country. In modern societies, people have become much stronger at speaking out against external pressures and interventions. But family remains a closed box in every country, even in the most modern ones. The pressures and challenges that happen within the family and shape a person throughout their life are still rarely talked about. Our story may be a small family drama, but I believe it carries profound importance with its content and messages. We send our greetings to our viewers and hope they enjoy watching.

This interview with Engin Şenkan was featured in Episode Magazine’s MIPCOM 2024 issue.