Basilisk (Şahmaran) (translated)

Şahmaran is a 1993 Turkish adventure and fantasy film directed by Zülfü Livaneli, loosely inspired by the legend of Shahmaran, the serpent queen. It follows Yusuf, a boy who lives a poor but contented life with his grandfather, running a coffeehouse on the shores of the Golden Horn. Fascinated by his grandfather's tales of Shahmaran—and inheriting the old man's past as a treasure hunter—Yusuf has a vivid imagination. When he and a friend set off for adventure in the ancient Byzantine-era dungeons, Yusuf gets lost and falls into the hands of a band of antiquities smugglers. The gang is led by a beautiful and mysterious sultana, and Yusuf begins to wonder whether she is the very Shahmaran of his dreams. Türkân Şoray stars as the sultana, with Rana Cabbar and Suna Selen in supporting roles. The film blends a coming-of-age adventure with motifs drawn from Anatolian folklore.