Every evening for the past four months, a tall young man with soulful blue eyes has been stealing hearts across West Asia, from the refugee camps of the Gaza Strip to the gated mansions of Riyadh.But it’s not just the striking good looks of Mohannad, hero of the hugely popular Turkish TV soap Noor that appeal to female viewers. He’s romantic, attentive to his wife Noor, supportive of her independence and ambitions as a fashion designer — in short, a rare gem for women in conservative, male-dominated surroundings.Noor delivers an idealised portrayal of modern married life as equal partnership — clashing with the norms of traditional West Asian societies.“I told my husband, ‘learn from him, how he treats her, how he loves her, how he cares about her’,” said Heba Hamdan, 24, a housewife visiting the West Bank from Amman, Jordan.
