Biography
Begüm Birgören is a veteran Turkish actress whose career spans nearly three decades of television and film. Born in Eskişehir on September 20, 1982, she began taking acting classes at 13 and has remained one of Turkish television’s most dependable leading players — known above all for her roles in Kırık Kanatlar, Ömre Bedel and the crime drama Kaçak.
Early life and education
Begüm Birgören was born in Eskişehir to a teacher father and an economist mother of Circassian descent, and the family later settled in Istanbul. From the age of 13 she attended acting classes, drawn to performance long before a professional career felt within reach. After finishing school she pursued that passion academically, studying Visual Arts and Visual Communication Design at Bahçeşehir University, then going on to earn a master’s degree in Film and Drama from Kadir Has University — a rare combination of craft training and scholarly rigour. Her television debut came in 1997 in Beşibiryerde, and she worked steadily through the early 2000s in Pilli Bebek, Mavi Kolye and Seher Vakti before landing the role of Ayşe in Kırık Kanatlar (2006) — a part that established her as a recognisable face in primetime drama. Sustained success followed with Ömre Bedel (2009–2011) and the crime drama Kaçak (2013–2014), where her performance as Merve earned her Best Supporting Actress at the Lions Theatre Awards. She later took on the lead role of İnci in Umuda Kelepçe Vurulmaz (2016–2017) and continued working into the 2020s in Tozluyaka and Son Nefesime Kadar (both 2022). She married director and actor Mehmet Cemil on October 18, 2020.
Awards and recognition
- Best Supporting Actress – Lions Theatre Awards (2013), for Kaçak
