The AmericasLatin American TV 1001 episodesWhy turkish telenovelas are thrivingSherezade, a young widow, needs cash to pay for her son’s leukaemia treatment.She accepts $150,000 in return for sleeping with her boss Onur, a balding misogynist who advises his friends not to trust women because “perfidy fills them like the weave of their beautiful garments”.Unexpectedly, the pair fall in love.But―plot spoiler―it takes two failed engagements, one divorce, the appearance of illegitimate children, a miscarriage caused by poisonous tea, a few assassinations and one suicide for the couple finally to commit to one another in episode 179 (the son survives, too).When the Turkish soap opera “1001 Nights”, loosely based on the classic collection of Middle Eastern folk tales, first aired on Chilean tv in 2014, it broke viewing records.Mega, the ailing broadcaster that bought the rights, was the only channel to make a profit that year.It has bought the rights to 26 other Turkish shows since then, and remains one of the country’s most popular channels.The largest market for Turkish shows used to be the Middle East.
