Turkish shows like ‘Ertuğrul’, ‘Feriha’ and ‘Masum’ removed from Indian streaming platforms amid India-Pakistan tension

Turkish TV shows, once loved by Indian audiences, are now quietly being removed from popular streaming platforms. After Pakistani dramas were pulled following India-Pakistan’s rising tensions, Turkish series are now facing a similar fate. The reason? Turkey’s political support to Pakistan.A Mid-day report mentioned, Zee5 has already taken down its entire Turkish drama catalogue. Other OTT platforms are now considering doing the same, with some putting new deals on hold.Series like ‘Ertuğrul‘, ‘Feriha‘ have now been removedOver the past few years, Turkish series like ‘Ertuğrul’, ‘Feriha’, and ‘Masum’ found huge popularity in India, especially in Tier-1 and Tier-2 cities. However, the ongoing political strain has led Zee5 to act early and remove titles without any public announcement. Among those taken down is ‘Relationship Status: It’s Complicated’, along with several others under the Zindagi label.An insider from Zee5 told Mid-day, “We’ve been monitoring the sentiment for weeks. While there is no government directive, we made a business decision to avoid a potential backlash. These titles, a part of the Zindagi bouquet, were doing well in Tier-1 and -2 cities, but the risk of reputational damage outweighed the benefits.”Pause on new Turkish contentWhile platforms like Amazon’s MX Player have not yet removed Turkish content, they are clearly being cautious. Popular shows like ‘Golden Boy’, ‘Love is in the Air’, and ‘Endless Love’ are still available. But according, the platform’s content team has been asked to halt new acquisitions from Turkey.An insider shared, “We haven’t received any formal instructions or advisory from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. As of now, no content has been removed, but we have paused new acquisitions from Turkish production houses.”This pause signals the unease among streaming platforms. Even without official word from the government, no one wants to risk backlash from viewers.YouTube channels under watchIt’s not just OTT platforms feeling the heat. YouTube channels that stream Turkish dramas are also facing trouble. One such channel, Live Pakistan, which aired ‘Resurrection: Ertuğrul’, has been unavailable in India since Friday noon.A source from the channel said, “We received three takedown requests in the past two days. It felt coordinated. If this escalates, more channels could disappear overnight from India.” Although ‘Resurrection: Ertuğrul’ can still be found on another channel, there is growing concern that more takedowns could follow.No government ban yet, but industry is staying cautiousInterestingly, the Indian government has not officially banned Turkish dramas. Still, the entertainment industry is clearly taking matters into its own hands. The Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) has issued a strong statement urging Indian authorities to act against the continued streaming of Turkish shows on OTT platforms. “We are writing to express our serious concern and strong objection regarding the continued streaming and promotion of Turkish shows on various Over-The-Top (OTT) platforms operating in India.”