Being a star was of no concern for her… She didn’t care for it, but in the minds of the audience and the public she held a special place. I have known Sevda since the ‘70s, and been a close witness of the modest and proud life she has been leading. Being and living free at all times is crucial for her and she never compromises that. She knows when to say no. After their first encounter, Halit Refiğ had said of her: “a fleet of a woman…” He was impressed with Sevda’s naturalness and had given her the coveted role of Naciye of Maraş in his film Gurbet Kuşları / Birds of Foreign Land. That was a career defining moment for Sevda. During the period when there was little interest for Turkish films she tried her hand at singing. She is passionate and thus refused to do another job in between her stage work. She took music lessons and wanted to perform as a singer, as best as she could. But the fire of cinema never died down in her heart. She has worked with almost all of the master directors of Turkish cinema; from Yılmaz Güney to Halit Refiğ, from Atıf Yılmaz to Metin Erksan, from Ömer Kavur to Feyzi Tuna… During the golden age of Turkish cinema in the ‘60s, she has broken a record by working in 24 films in one year. Although she was rebellious, strong-headed and sharp-tongued, she managed to get accepted and starred in 150 films. In recent years she has also appeared in TV projects. She had shared the stage with a theatre doyenne like Nejat Uygur. When she is offered a part she wants to know who the director is first before finding out her role. She never objects to anything that the role demands. At first she was type casted as a femme fatale, but she has managed to break out of that by playing widely different characters. Her journey in cinema which she started when she was 16 still continues. She succeeded in being a long lasting actress… She is a dissonant Sevda–an unusual love affair… –Biket İlhan