But the show only reached widespread notice in Pakistan this year after apparently catching the eye of Mr Khan.
While the former cricketer may be fondly remembered in Britain as a prodigious Chelsea playboy, the past two decades have seen him cultivate an image in his homeland of a deeply pious and conservative Muslim.
Since his election to lead the nuclear-armed nation of 220 million he has spoken of his ambition “to create a Pakistan which is in line with the first Muslim society created by Prophet Muhammad in Medina”.
Educating Pakistan’s vast youth about Islamic history has repeatedly emerged as a key part of his vision. He has also suggested starting a television channel alongside Malaysia and Turkey to create push back against what they see as global Islamophobia.
“[Ertugrul] is interesting and a culture of Islam is shown in it,” Mr Khan said in April. “Our children should know our culture. It has also romance. Our children should know Islamic culture and values.”
The show also makes a welcome change from the increasing Western obscenity and vulgarity seeping into local culture from Hollywood and Bollywood, he has said.
Mr Khan’s promotion of the series had certainly helped the show’s success, said Umair Alvi, an entertainment writer in Pakistan. It had also benefited from a prime slot during Ramadan when many Pakistanis were at home because of Covid-19 lockdown precautions.
With little documented from the period, scriptwriters had been called on to make up most of the adventures.
“The history that the drama depicts is not accurate as we all know, because the material available on the person on the lead is just six or seven pages long. Whatever the show has produced or whatever the writers have done, it’s all fiction. But when it comes to Islamic stories and when it comes to Islamic history, people accept everything that takes place on the screen.”
Pakistanis’ devotion to their new television heroes has also led to moments of online culture clash.
Some Pakistani men wanting to know more about the actresses have seemingly been disappointed to log onto their Instagram feeds and find their heroines wearing Western clothing and swimming costumes. Several have left comments telling the actresses to dress more modestly. One male star was chided for letting a dog in his house.
