Erkan Kolçak Köstendil

Erkan Kolçak Köstendil — Biography

Erkan Kolçak Köstendil, born on 16 January 1983 in Bursa, is a Turkish actor, director and screenwriter. His family immigrated to Turkey from Kyustendil, and he is the cousin of actor Bülent Şakrak. While attending Bursa Atatürk High School he took up football and even played as a goalkeeper for Bursaspor, but his passion for acting won out; he left the sport and graduated from the Theatre Department of the Mimar Sinan University of Fine Arts State Conservatory.

He began his career with roles in theatre, film and television. He took supporting parts in highly rated series such as Kurtlar Vadisi, Yılan Hikâyesi, Sakarya Fırat, Merhamet and Muhteşem Yüzyıl: Kösem. Widespread fame in Turkey came with Ulan İstanbul, in which he also performed the song Yanarım, whose lyrics he wrote himself, together with Şebnem Bozoklu.

The peak of his career was the role of Vartolu Saadettin (Salih Koçovalı) in the series Çukur, which began in 2017 and became a phenomenon. He also appeared in fantasy productions such as Görünen Adam and Yaratılan (2023), and in recent years acted in Ne Gemiler Yaktım (2023), Öldürdüğün Şeyler (2025) and Veliaht (2025). The short films he directed earned him awards at national and international competitions, and he has pursued screenwriting work. His marriage to actress Cansu Tosun ended in divorce in 2026.