Reception of Turkey’s Soft and Sharp Power in Pakistan: Ordinary People Interviews

Based on 38 semi-structured interviews conducted in Lahore, this chapter examines the perspectives of the Pakistani viewers and non-viewers of the Turkish TV show ‘Resurrection: Ertuğrul.’ Using NVivo, we analyze how the viewers and non-viewers related to the show and applied these to their understanding of various aspects of domestic and international politics as well as parts of their social lives. We identified civilizational populist, soft power and sharp power themes such as learning about Islam and Islamic heritage, corrupt elite as the internal enemies, Erdoğan as the strong leader of the Ummah, us (the Ummah) versus them (Crusaders), anti-Western conspiracy theories, Turkey as the leader of the Ummah that stands up against the West, jihad, killing and dying for the cause, and conquering other lands. We find that the show influenced perceptions of Turkey, highlighting its role as a strong Muslim nation under Erdoğan, despite skepticism about Turkey's liberalism and secular influences. The findings reveal that many of the viewers support the idea of a Pan-Islamic union led by Turkey, viewing stronger ties as essential for the Muslim world's welfare. They express concerns about Western and Israeli conspiracies causing disunity among Muslims. The show resonated with the viewers by reflecting contemporary socio-political issues and inspiring resistance and even jihad against perceived Western oppression. Additionally, the viewers hoped for a revival of Islamic values and a departure from secular influences, seeing Erdoğan as a key figure in this revival.