Turkish stage and screen actor Levent Kırca, who died on Monday aged 67, was laid to rest on Tuesday in a crowded funeral in İstanbul, attended by the thespian's family, friends and fans.
A special ceremony for Kırca was held Tuesday morning at the Levent Kırca Theater in Kadıköy, which was attended by his family, friends and students.
Actor Bülent Demir, a former student of Kırca, told reporters at the ceremony that Kırca's single wish was for his theater to live on. “We will do everything we can to make this company carry on,” Demir told the Doğan news agency.
Following the ceremony in Kadıköy, Kırca's body was taken to the Levent Mosque for his funeral, where hundreds of the actor's fans, as well as numerous well-known figures from Turkey's art and political circles, including Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu and veteran journalist Uğur Dündar, were present to bid him farewell, the Cihan news agency reported.
Following noon prayers, Kırca's body was taken to the Zincirlikuyu cemetery to be buried amid applause.
Kırca, best known for his wildly popular television sketches during the 1990s in which he parodied countless characters from coup generals to politicians and everyday people, lost a three-month battle with liver cancer on Monday. The actor had been receiving chemotherapy treatment since July and was hospitalized last week.