We talked to Mehmet Yılmaz Ak, who portrays Timur in the popular series Blooming Lady, about his initial excitement upon reading the script and the importance of Bahar’s character for the audience. Mehmet Yılmaz Ak also delved into the complexity of Timur’s character, emphasizing the need to depict him as more than just a typical villain.
Almost everyone around us has found Blooming Lady very comforting. How did you feel when you first met Blooming Lady? How did Bahar and her world come across to you?
I felt very excited when I first read the script. The idea of being involved in this project made me feel great. I thought that the audience needed such a delicate narrative and such stories on TV. That’s why I felt that Bahar would be good for all of us, and indeed, it turned out to be so.
Mehmet Yılmaz Ak: “Describing a character as purely good or purely evil diminishes their complexity and reduces them to a stereotype.”
The audience can’t help but hate Timur; a character who cheats on his selfless wife, disregards her life-threatening illness, and mocks her journey of self-discovery. How – ever, in some scenes, we feel that Timur also has emotions, occasionally hesitates, and questions himself. Timur cannot be simply labeled as a pure ‘villain,’ in my opinion. What are your opinions on this matter? Could we hear a bit about the character from you?
Describing a character as purely good or purely evil diminishes their complexity and reduces them to a stereotype. I believe the credibility of the character is lost when this happens. After all, no one can be purely good or purely evil. The actions and thoughts of a character can be described as bad, but we are not obliged to approve those actions, of course. The character doesn’t need to resort to a justifiable reason for them either. On the contrary, being caught between these actions and emotions makes them more human. In this way, I leave Timur to face his own conscience. 
This exclusive interview with Mehmet Yılmaz Ak was published in Episode’s MIPTV 2024 issue.
