Dil Leyla (2016) · Documentary | iWonder

Dil Leyla

PLUS

201671 minPG-13documentary

PLUS

Dil Leyla

201671 minPG-13documentary

Home after 20 years, a Kurdish-German woman becomes Turkey’s youngest mayor – returning to rebuild her war-torn city as the past rises again.

Genres

Director

Dil Leyla

2016• 71 minPG-13

Synopsis

Home after 20 years, a Kurdish-German woman becomes Turkey’s youngest mayor – returning to rebuild her war-torn city as the past rises again.

People

Asli Ozarslandirector

Synopsis

At 26, a Kurdish-German woman becomes Turkey’s youngest mayor after an 81% landslide in Cizre, a war-scarred Kurdish city near the Syrian and Iraqi borders. Sent to Germany at five after her father was killed by the Turkish military, she returns home after 20 years determined to rebuild and heal her city. But on the eve of national elections, the fragile calm breaks – and the past resurfaces.

Comments

What are people saying?

Trailer

Play More Politics on PLUS

Play More Like This

Women Mayors in Turkey (2025)

Women Mayors in Turkey

Following the March 2024 municipal elections, Turkey saw a record number of women mayors elected, reshaping local governance and advancing gender representation.

Women Mayors in Turkey

Turkey: Erdogan for Ever? (2025)

Turkey: Erdogan for Ever?

Widespread protests erupt in Turkey following the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu in March 2025, reflecting deep divisions in public opinion regarding President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's leadership.

Turkey: Erdogan for Ever?

Turkey: The World According to Erdogan (2023)

Turkey: The World According to Erdogan

Around 45,000 people died in the February 6 earthquake, leading to widespread criticism of the government's disaster management and infrastructure safety.

Turkey: The World According to Erdogan

The Turkish model (Documentary of 2012 from the series "I Love Democracy") (2015)

The Turkish model (Documentary of 2012 from the series "I Love Democracy")

Turkey's AKP government is presented as a potential democratic model for Arab nations, raising questions about secularism, freedom of expression, and regional influence.

The Turkish model (Documentary of 2012 from the series "I Love Democracy")

What's Next For The Kurds Who Defeated ISIS? (2019)

What's Next For The Kurds Who Defeated ISIS?

Kurdish leaders in Northern Syria face ongoing threats from ISIS and potential Turkish invasion while striving to maintain a radical experiment in democracy and gender equality.

What's Next For The Kurds Who Defeated ISIS?

The Two Faces of Turkey: Inside Istanbul's Cultural Rebellion (2026)

The Two Faces of Turkey: Inside Istanbul's Cultural Rebellion

Istanbul's cultural landscape is shifting under President Erdogan's influence, as traditional venues give way to Islamic fashion malls and artists like Aisu and Tunay resist censorship.

The Two Faces of Turkey: Inside Istanbul's Cultural Rebellion

21st Century Sultan: Why Turkey Keeps Choosing Erdoğan (2026)

21st Century Sultan: Why Turkey Keeps Choosing Erdoğan

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's leadership faces unprecedented challenges in Turkey, marked by corruption, press repression, and a historic election following the 2023 earthquake disaster.

21st Century Sultan: Why Turkey Keeps Choosing Erdoğan

Elections in Turkey (2023)

Elections in Turkey

Elections in Turkey on 14 May 2023 saw opposition parties unite against incumbent president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who faces accusations of undermining democracy.

Elections in Turkey

From Grief Over Kobane To Chaos: Istanbul's Kurdish Riots (2014)

From Grief Over Kobane To Chaos: Istanbul's Kurdish Riots

Two members of the Okmeydanı community die while fighting with the YPG in Kobani, prompting protests and memorials across Turkey.

From Grief Over Kobane To Chaos: Istanbul's Kurdish Riots

Play More Films in Politics

Policing the Police (2016)

Policing the Police

2016

India Burning & Russia's Fight Factory (2020)

India Burning & Russia's Fight Factory

2020

The Anthrax Files (2013)

The Anthrax Files

2013

Is Ruth Paine a government agent who helped frame Lee Harvey Oswald? (2023)

Is Ruth Paine a government agent who helped frame Lee Harvey Oswald?

2023

President Trump (2016)

President Trump

2016

Sex, Slavery, and Drugs in Bangladesh (2015)

Sex, Slavery, and Drugs in Bangladesh

2015

Shape of the Future (2023)

Shape of the Future

2023

The untold story of Israel's foundation. (2023)

The untold story of Israel's foundation.

2023

Explore Dil Leyla

Browse more like this

Women Mayors in Turkey (2025)

Women Mayors in Turkey

Following the March 2024 municipal elections, Turkey saw a record number of women mayors elected, reshaping local governance and advancing gender representation.

Women Mayors in Turkey

No digital watch option in your country

Turkey: Erdogan for Ever? (2025)

Turkey: Erdogan for Ever?

Widespread protests erupt in Turkey following the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu in March 2025, reflecting deep divisions in public opinion regarding President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's leadership.

Turkey: Erdogan for Ever?

No digital watch option in your country

Turkey: The World According to Erdogan (2023)

Turkey: The World According to Erdogan

Around 45,000 people died in the February 6 earthquake, leading to widespread criticism of the government's disaster management and infrastructure safety.

Turkey: The World According to Erdogan

No digital watch option in your country

The Turkish model (Documentary of 2012 from the series "I Love Democracy") (2015)

The Turkish model (Documentary of 2012 from the series "I Love Democracy")

Turkey's AKP government is presented as a potential democratic model for Arab nations, raising questions about secularism, freedom of expression, and regional influence.

The Turkish model (Documentary of 2012 from the series "I Love Democracy")

No digital watch option in your country

The Two Faces of Turkey: Inside Istanbul's Cultural Rebellion (2026)

The Two Faces of Turkey: Inside Istanbul's Cultural Rebellion

Istanbul's cultural landscape is shifting under President Erdogan's influence, as traditional venues give way to Islamic fashion malls and artists like Aisu and Tunay resist censorship.

The Two Faces of Turkey: Inside Istanbul's Cultural Rebellion

No digital watch option in your country

21st Century Sultan: Why Turkey Keeps Choosing Erdoğan (2026)

21st Century Sultan: Why Turkey Keeps Choosing Erdoğan

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's leadership faces unprecedented challenges in Turkey, marked by corruption, press repression, and a historic election following the 2023 earthquake disaster.

21st Century Sultan: Why Turkey Keeps Choosing Erdoğan

No digital watch option in your country

Elections in Turkey (2023)

Elections in Turkey

Elections in Turkey on 14 May 2023 saw opposition parties unite against incumbent president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who faces accusations of undermining democracy.

Elections in Turkey

No digital watch option in your country

Leyla (2017)

Leyla

2017•1h11m•★6.0TMDB

Leyla, the youngest and first female mayor of Cizre, Turkey, navigates political challenges while advocating for her community's rights and empowerment.

Love, Deutschmarks and Death (2022)

Love, Deutschmarks and Death

2022•1h38m•★8.0TMDB

Over 60 years, Turkish musicians in Germany have influenced the country's music scene, reflecting the experiences of the Turkish diaspora.

Love, Deutschmarks and Death

Melek Leaves (1985)

Melek Leaves

1985•1h28m•★8.0TMDB

After fourteen years in Berlin, Melek Tez decides to return to Turkey, reflecting on her experiences as a Turkish migrant in Germany.

Cutting Through Rocks (2025)

Cutting Through Rocks

2025•1h35m•★7.5TMDB

37-year-old Sara Shahverdi won a landslide election to become the first female councilwoman in her rural Iranian village, sparking widespread debate.

Cutting Through Rocks

My Name Is Happy (2023)

My Name Is Happy

2023•1h21m•★7.5TMDB

A Kurdish singer from southeastern Turkey is shot after rejecting a marriage proposal, leading to a fight for recovery and artistic freedom.

My Name Is Happy

In Her Hands (2022)

In Her Hands

2022•1h33m•★5.9TMDB

Afghanistan's youngest female mayor fights for education amid the chaos following the withdrawal of Western forces from her country.

Kurdish Lover (2012)

Kurdish Lover

2012•1h38m•★6.8TMDB

A shaman enters a trance while watching television in a Kurdish village affected by war, where love and control often intertwine.

20 minutes with Melik Tutuncu (2004)

20 minutes with Melik Tutuncu

2004•20m•★10.0TMDB

A 30-year affair between Safiye Behar, a Jewish Marxist feminist, and Mustapha Kemal Atatürk influenced the reforms that shaped modern Turkey.

20 minutes with Melik Tutuncu

Two Locks of Hair: The Missing Girls of Dersim (2010)

Two Locks of Hair: The Missing Girls of Dersim

2010•1h•★7.0TMDB

Tens of thousands of Alevi Kurds and Zazas were killed or displaced in eastern Turkey during the Dersim rebellion of 1937-1938.

Two Locks of Hair: The Missing Girls of Dersim

Sozdar, She Who Lives Her Promise (2007)

Sozdar, She Who Lives Her Promise

2007•1h10m•★6.5TMDB

At twelve, Nuriye Kesbir refused marriage, later becoming a leader in the Kurdistan Workers' Party and fighting for Kurdish rights in Northern Iraq.

Sozdar, She Who Lives Her Promise