Farewell messages to Tomris Giritlioğlu: 'You were the first person to see the child-woman within me'

Tomris Giritlioğlu, the producer and project designer behind series such as 'Kurşun Yarası', 'Bu Kalp Seni Unutur mu?', 'Çemberimde Gül Oya', and 'Hatırla Sevgili', who rose to fame with the 1999 film 'Salkım Hanımın Taneleri' which she directed, has passed away at the age of 67. Giritlioğlu had been receiving treatment for cancer for some time.

Upon learning of Giritlioğlu's passing, famous actors shared tributes on their social media accounts:

TUBA BÜYÜKÜSTÜN: I LEARNED SO MUCH FROM HER

"We have all left a piece of our hearts in at least one of Tomris Giritlioğlu's projects. We have questioned, thought, and fallen in love all at the same time. She was one of Turkey's most important female directors. A woman at a table dominated by men. A visionary... Before starting a project, she would call you in. We would sit at the meeting table. First, she would explain the project and the character, then she would open a book by one of the masters. She would say, 'The colors of this project will be the colors of Caravaggio/Da Vinci/Rembrandt.' I learned so much from her. I am one of those who passed through the school of Tomris Giritlioğlu. She brought many actors and directors into the industry. She believed in what she believed in until the very end. She was stubborn. And it would happen. My condolences to Turkish cinema, Turkish television, and all of us."

CANSEL ELÇİN: I COULD NOT HAVE BEEN WITHOUT YOU

Cansel Elçin, one of the actors from the series "Hatırla Sevgili," shared a photo taken with Giritlioğlu, writing: "My mentor, my professional mother. The one who brought me back to my country, who made me who I am. I could not have been without you. Your absence is devastating. Memories remain. I loved you very much. You will always be in the stories I tell. Goodbye, Tomris."

BEREN SAAT

"You were the first person in this world to see the woman in the child within me who never grew up. The fights you picked for me, your endless belief in me, the strong women within us you helped us discover, the intellectual conversations with friends you invited us to during the creation of every story, our script-writing holidays, staying up until dawn having deep conversations, laughter, unexpected tears, finding my closest friends in stories that are the memory of Turkey… How much I have learned from you. The watch you gifted me gives me strength next to my desk. I work on every script just like in the years when we had the hope of changing things in this country. Ever since I heard the sentence 'We have lost Ms. Tomris,' a pain has been roaring inside me, but I am not crying; if I cry, the magic will break…"

ECE USLU

"My condolences. I am deeply saddened. May God have mercy on their soul."

İLKER KALELİ

"Thank you for believing in me, for bringing me back to my country, and for everything you left behind. Rest in peace, Tomris Giritlioğlu."

BEGÜM KÜTÜK

"May they rest in peace. May God have mercy on their soul."

MELEK BAYKAL

"Rest in peace."

FUNERAL ARRANGEMENTS ANNOUNCED

A farewell ceremony for Tomris Giritlioğlu will be held tomorrow at 11:00 AM at the Torun Center.

Following the ceremony, Giritlioğlu's body will be sent to her hometown of Antakya for burial after the funeral prayer, which will be held at Teşvikiye Mosque following the afternoon prayer (ikindi).