True Story of a Little Girl and a Soldier: Ayla

作者: The AsiaN Editor on 31 January , 2017.
类别: All, Art, Asia, Culture, East Asia, Entertainment, Film, History, News
标签: ayla movie, korean war, turkish korean brotherhood

In 1950, Sergeant Suleyman was one of the thousands of Turkish soldiers who went to South Korea to fight the enemy. Suleyman and Ali, a fellow soldier from Iskenderun, had volunteered to help the people of South Korea and to fight in a war that was taking place in a remote country. American military officers thought that the war was over and that they would all return home to reunite with their families at Christmas.

This was all they could think and talk about. However, the war that was considered to be almost over unexpectedly restarted one night. On that fateful night, Sergeant Suleyman’s squadron was fighting the enemy in a bloody battle. The soldiers noticed some kind of movement behind the nearby bushes. They all turned their guns in that direction. It could be the enemy lying in ambush with the purpose of entrapping them. It might also be a fierce animal. It might be anything. Sergeant Suleyman pushed Ali’s gun down towards the ground.

He started to walk towards the bushes warily but fearlessly. The moonlight was bright enough to make the whole area behind the bushes quite visible. A five-year-old small girl whose face was shining like the moon was glaring moon was glaring at Suleyman with her slanted eyes which resembled two thin lines due to extreme fear. Sergeant Suleyman picked up and embraced the child who was feeling very cold and fearful. This hug was the beginning of a close and unending bond which would last for the next 60 years. The little girl did not have either an identity card or any other possessions that belonged to her family on her. The soldiers did not want to leave the little girl there. Her family could be lost or dead. Since it was not possible for them to look for her family at that moment, they had no choice but to take her with them to the camp site.

The little girl did not have either an identity card or any other possessions that belonged to her family on her. The soldiers did not want to leave the little girl there. Her family could be lost or dead. Since it was not possible for them to look for her family at that moment, they had no choice but to take her with them to the camp site.

Thus started Suleyman and the little girl’s long and adventurous relationship. At the camp site, old blankets were used to sew a pair of pyjamas for the little girl immediately. They also had to find a name for her. Suleyman named the girl “Ayla” (Halo) because her face shined like the moon, and she had been found thanks to the moonlight. Everything was temporarily planned, but Ayla’s family could never be found. The Turkish Brigade was constantly changing places and Turkish soldiers were retreating or moving from north to south. This camp site was Ayla’s new home and playground. Ayla was an orphan princess who was stuck right in the middle of a war and an army that consisted of only men. She was the joy and mascot of the entire brigade. Not only was Sergeant Suleyman like a father to her but also everyone else was like either an uncle or a big brother to her. Ayla spent most of her time with Sergeant Suleyman and his best friend; Ali.

Ayla was a very clever her time with Se girl because she could understand and learn everything very fast. She learned a lot of Turkish words in a short time, and she was also able to translate many Korean words into Turkish. While Ayla was playing games and enjoying her childhood innocently, the war was still going on with all its cruelty a few kilometers away. Unfortunately, Ali’s dead body arrived from one of these bloody battles one day. Just like Ayla, Sergeant Suleyman started to feel increasingly lonely – as if he were also an orphan – after losing Ali and his many other friends. Being stuck in this hellish situation and having no one else to turn to, Suleyman and Ayla got closer to each other day by day. Many years passed smoothly, and Sergeant Suleyman got married in the meantime. He was leading an ordinary life with it’s happy and sad moments like everyone else. Yet, he could never forget his adopted daughter Ayla. He showed Ayla’s photos to his wife and told her about their experiences in South Korea.

49 years later, after a severe earthquake hit Golcuk in 1999, Sergeant Suleyman read in the newspaper that South Korea was going to send a rescue team to Golcuk, Turkey. He took a close look at all the photos in the newspapers. One of the people on the rescue team might be Ayla. Maybe that little girl had grown up and decided to come to his adoptive father’s homeland in order to help the victims of the earthquake.

No matter how small it was, there was still some hope that Ayla and Suleyman might come together again. 52 years later, feeling extremely excited and holding a flag in his hand, Sergeant 52 y Suleyman took a seat in front of the TV set before everyone else to watch the 2002 World Cup match between South Korea and Turkey. He recorded the match, too. Pausing the game whenever the camera focused on South Korean fans, he examined their faces one by one until the next morning. It was obvious that the crowd of people who were holding Turkish flags and watching the game had not forgotten Turkey. He watched every second of the game, hoping that he might be able to see Ayla’s face among the spectators.

Sergeant Suleyman never lost hope that he would find Ayla someday; And 60 years later, Se Sergeant Suleyman’s hope was rekindled when Turkish veteran soldiers were invited to South Korea to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Korean War. Was Ayla still alive? If so, was Sergeant Suleyman who was an 84-year-old man in the twilight of his life going to be able to see her one last time before his death? International authorities decided to pull some strings to make Sergeant Suleyman’s dream come true. A South Korean journalist started to investigate the whole story, and all government archives were scanned in detail. Unfortunately, most of the government archives in Ankara, the capital city of Turkey, had either been lost or destroyed as a result of a big fire. Looking at each and every photo, they tried to identify Ayla. Nevertheless, no trace of the little girl could be found from the documents that remained at hand.

There was also a possibility that Ayla might have passed away. Sergeant Suleyman kept saying his prayers and never lost hope. The fact that he did not want to leave this world without keeping a promise that he had made years ago gave much-needed strength to his exhausted body. He was more like a father than a soldier. Fathers were supposed to fight to keep the promises they had made and live for their children.

Finally, when all hope was lost, an important discovery was made. Years after graduation from high school, Ayla still kept seeing the sister of someone who was a member of the alumni association. In this way, it was possible to learn what Ayla’s official name was. Right after her separation from Sergeant Suleyman, Ayla’s name was officially recorded as “Kim Eunja” by the South Korean government. Ayla had been married once, but she was so unfortunate that she became a widow at a very young age. She was living with her grandchildren on the outskirts of Seoul, and she was a sixty-year-old woman working as a cleaning lady at a daycare center. 60 years full of many troubles and painful experiences had passed quickly. It was not even certain whether Ayla would be able to remember either Sergeant Suleyman or the time she spent with him when she was 5 years old.

However, things did not turn out as expected. Ayla was visited at her house. When she was shown the photographs that had been taken years ago, she was able to remember Sergeant Suleyman and everything that happened 60 years ago clearly, and she couldn’t help crying. “He was my hero,” said Ayla and added, “He put up a struggle for me, and never wanted to leave me behind. He even wanted to hide me in a box and take me to his homeland. He was like a father to me and I could never ever forget him.” Exactly 60 years later, Ayla and Suleyman came together and hugged each other at a park located in Seoul, South Korea. At long last, the loving father was able to keep his promise. This long-lasting and heart-warming story of love between two people from different nations could finally take its place in history!

CAST LIST & CREW

ÇETİN TEKİNDOR SÜLEYMAN DİLBİRLİĞİ

LEE GYUNGJIN AYLA

İSMAİL HACIOĞLU SERGEANT SÜLEYMAN

KIM SEOL AYLA

ALİ ATAY SERGEANT

ALİ TANER BİRSEL MAJOR FUAT

MURAT YILDIRIM LIEUTENANT MESUT

ERKAN PETEKKAYA MAJOR MEHMET ERGÜN

ALTAN ERKEKLİ HÜSEYİN DİLBİRLİĞİ

MEHMET ESEN COLONEL CELAL

DAMLA SÖNMEZ NURAN