It is me Knocking doors-Shows

 

It is me Knocking doors-Shows

 

It is me Knocking doors-Shows

 

It is me Knocking doors-Shows

 

It is me Knocking doors-Shows

 

It is me Knocking doors-Shows

 

It is me Knocking doors-Shows

 

Do not Forget me!

 

A Youth Rebellion in the 1990s: Bengisu Poetry and Literature Magazine

 

✊ Independent Magazine Publishing and Zine Culture in 90s Turkey

The second half of the 1990s was the last golden age in Turkey when the internet and digital publishing were still in their infancy, and literary production was heavily fueled by physical street culture. During this period, as an alternative to mainstream literature monopolized by major conglomerates and publishing houses, a "zine" and independent magazine movement was born—funded entirely by the pocket money of university students.

Printed in primitive printing houses under severe financial constraints, with pages hand-stapled and bound by the poets themselves, these publications became libertarian and experimental oases of the era's literature. One of the most authentic and niche examples of this stormy period, centered at Istanbul University, was Bengisu Poetry and Literature Magazine.

📜 The Birth and Editorial Character of Bengisu Magazine

Bengisu emerged in 1996 as an independent culture, art, and literature movement within Istanbul University.

• The Origin Story: Kürşat Ural (born in Artvin, 1972), then a student at the Istanbul University Faculty of Economics, founded the "Bengisu Poetry Group" following his 1994 student newspaper venture, Karınca. Under the umbrella of the Istanbul University Student Cultural Center (ÖKM) Literature Club, this group decided to transform their collective into a formal magazine.
• Editorial Line: The magazine did not just feature modern Turkish poetry; it opened its pages to essays, literary criticism, and contemporary culture-art debates centered around existential angst, rebellion, alienation, and social opposition.
• The Dual-Numbering Tradition: The most famous issue to survive into present-day second-hand bookstore archives is dated December 1996. This copy was printed with a dual-numbering system—"Issue: 1 (4)"—symbolizing the transition phase from an amateur, zine-style structure to an official periodical.

🤝 Collective Labor and the Names Behind the Scenes

Bengisu was kept alive through pure dedication and a collective, community-driven effort rather than a professional editorial staff.

• Young Poets and Illustrators: Chief edited by Kürşat Ural, the magazine featured writings and drawings by university youths belonging to the Bengisu Poetry Group. A dedicated team of illustrators handled the visual design and the artwork interspersed between poems. This team literally carried the printed sections from the press on their shoulders and bound them together by hand.
• An Academic Shield: Prof. Dr. Türkel Minibaş: While university administrations kept their distance from this independent youth movement, Prof. Dr. Türkel Minibaş, a faculty member at the Economics Department, championed the students. One of the era's most beautiful memories of solidarity is how Minibaş proudly displayed Bengisu posters and issues on her office wall.
• Literature Festivals: The Bengisu team did not stop at publishing. They bridged the gap between master writers and the younger generation by organizing the highly acclaimed 4th and 5th Literature Festivals at Istanbul University.

🎙️ Literary Peaks: The Ahmet Altan and Can Yücel Issues

Despite highly restricted means, Bengisu's sheer literary quality managed to catch the attention of two massive figures of the era, bringing them to its covers.

• The Ahmet Altan Interview (December 1996): One of the most significant issues making its mark in archives features an extensive literary interview with Ahmet Altan. Given during a time when Altan was taking the literary world by storm with his novel Tehlikeli Masallar (Dangerous Tales), this interview given to an independent student magazine holds historical importance for shedding light on the popular literary debates of the period.
• The Can Yücel Interview and Its Trajectory: One of Bengisu's greatest achievements was landing an exclusive interview with the grand master of Turkish poetry, Can Yücel. Despite financial bottlenecks, tight student budgets, and distribution barriers, this special issue was printed with immense sacrifice and brought to readers.
• A Tragicomical Legal Battle: Though the issue was successfully printed and distributed, the magazine later had to pause publishing due to graduations. Under the strict publishing laws of the era, bureaucracy gaps in official legal notifications led to a lawsuit against Chief Editor Kürşat Ural. Ural was tried and sentenced during this turbulent period simply for putting out an independent, opposition-leaning cultural magazine.

📍 The Beyoğlu Memory and Cultural Ecosystem of the Era

The distribution and survival of Bengisu were directly tied to the unique geography of 1990s Beyoğlu. In an era devoid of social media, communication was maintained via "Post Office Boxes" (P.O. Box) printed on the back covers.

The printed magazines were carried in backpacks and distributed to independent bookstores like Robinson Crusoe 389 and Pandora, or left on the counters of the Aslıhan Pasajı (Second-hand Booksellers Bazaar). In the evenings, young poets and master writers shared the same tables at literary "liberated zones" like Simurg Cafe, Kaktüs Coffee, or Yakup Meyhanesi, where Bengisu’s Can Yücel and Ahmet Altan issues passed from hand to hand.

✒️ Acclaim from Poet Küçük İskender and Varlık Magazine

Poet Küçük İskender—one of the most iconic figures of 90s underground literature and Beyoğlu street culture—was among the leading names who closely followed and supported Kürşat Ural and the Bengisu magazine's battle on the literary scene.

• The Varlık Magazine Review: Küçük İskender specifically highlighted Kürşat Ural and the Bengisu movement in his column in Varlık—the country's most deep-rooted literary institution—as well as in his zine review pieces for alternative culture magazines.
• An Aesthetic Objection and Poetry Craftsmanship: In his column, İskender described the movement as "fresh blood that brought poetry down from suit-and-tie salons to the streets and lecture halls." He hailed the young students folding and stapling printing papers together as "true poetry craftsmanship and an aesthetic objection against mainstream commercial literature." Furthermore, he highly praised Kürşat Ural's poetic language and his defiant stance on his radio show "Geceleyin Bir Koşu" (A Run by Night)—named after an İsmet Özel poem—finding it deeply aligned with the free spirit of underground literature.

🏛️ From a Tangible Legacy to an Archival Memory

Bengisu Poetry and Literature Magazine stands as the tangible cry of a generation that refused to be ground down by the wheels of mainstream media and commercial publishing houses.

Today, wh

ile physical copies can only be found as rare collector's items on niche book platforms, Bengisu retains its unforgettable place in history. Driven by the fierce editorial vision of Kürşat Ural, backed by the invaluable witness of Küçük İskender in Varlık, and boldly hosting giants like Can Yücel and Ahmet Altan, it remains one of the most sincere and courageous pages of 1990s Turkish zine and youth literature history.

👉 #LiteratureHistory #90sCulture #IndependentPublishing #Poetry #ZineCulture #TurkishLiterature #BengisuDergisi