The Club follows the story of a mother, who is released from prison after 17 years and is set to mend the relationship with her daughter, who has no idea about her existence.
Summary
Matilda Aseo is being released from prison seventeen years later as part of a general pardon from the Turkish government. She had been found guilty of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. The first person she visits is Davit, the administrator of a local Jewish women’s community centre.
She wishes to leave Istanbul and relocate to Israel, a relatively new country. David pushes her to stay and visit her daughter Raşel, who has been staying in an orphanage since Matilda’s imprisonment. Matilda is adamant about not seeing the daughter as she feels she is abandoned, and she tears up the current photograph David hands her.
In comes Raşel who is seen romancing Ismet, an older cab driver who recently broke the heart of Raşel’s friend Tasula. Raşel resolves to be a compassionate friend while keeping quiet about the fact that she is the mystery “blonde” who catches Ismet’s eye. We discover that Ismet has no relationship with his father, Ali Seker, who invites Eastern European immigrants to Turkey to work at low wages in venues like Club Istanbul.
Raşel assists Tasula in obtaining her ID from Club Istanbul’s manager, a fierce man named Çelebi, in order for her to escape his grasp.
Raşel uncovers a stockpile of booze produced at the club after they break-in. Çelebi is attacked by her when he sees her there, but he eventually catches her and calls the police.
Meanwhile, Selim Songur, a composer and singer, petitions club owner Orhan to hire him as the club’s new singer. Orhan doesn’t usually hire male singers, but Salim assures him that his act will appeal to both European visitors and Turks. He decides to give Salim a try because he is having trouble negotiating with the existing singer.
When David and Matilda arrive at the police station to free Raşel, Çelebi resolves not to revoke his complaint after seeing her. She goes to the club to make an appeal to him, but he tells her that she will have to compensate him for what she did. So, he tells her that in exchange for him to retract his complaint, she must sign a blank bond. He tells her that he can work off the bond at the club, which she initially opposes to.
Matilda complies with Çelebi’s requirements in order to protect herself and avoid starting her adult life as a felon. It’s also when she understands she needs to meet her daughter for the first time.
When she meets the daughter for the first time, Raşel does not accept her and is constantly distant. However, with time, she comes around.
One day Raşel comes to know that her mother is a killer. She lashes out at her and disrespects her. Hurt, Matilda grabs her hand takes her to the place she was born.
She explains to her why she had killed someone. Her father and brother were arrested for some issues during the time the wealth tax was introduced. Even though they had paid their share, they were still arrested and made to work till they died.
She came to know that her lover, Mumtaz, who was also a very trustworthy employee of his father’s company, was behind the conspiracy. Out of anger, she killed him. Matilda hid the fact that Mumtaz was Raşel ‘s father. After listening to the story, Rasel tries to be a better daughter and behaves.
At the Club, Çelebi constantly tries to grapple Matilda with work. He is obsessed and has a history with her, as is evident by the group photo he has kept of his father’s company.
One night, Matilda notices that her daughter is going out with Ismet using a fake Muslim name. She warns her that she shouldn’t date someone if she knows he won’t accept her being a Non-Muslim. She tells her mother that he loves her and wouldn’t leave her, but all her hopes are broken when Ismet slaps her and leaves after she reveals she’s a Jew.
Even though Matilda is pissed, she consoles her and asks her to move on in life. She gets a job at the tailor’s shop.
Selim’s show is a superhit, despite him refusing to perform due to family troubles. He shines through it all and is gaining popularity.
We see Orhan’s mother, a bold woman with a no-nonsense attitude. She appears to be an important figure since Orhan decides to cover up the fact that she’s gone senile and doesn’t want anyone to know of her condition.
Orhan gets nominated for the Entrepreneur of the Year award but he’d be awarded on one condition: to get rid of the non-Muslims working in the club, but rather have only a Muslim workforce. He ordered Çelebi to start sacking people.
When Mordo, Davit’s son and a good friend of Raşel, comes to know what Ismet did, he warns him to stay away. Ismet goes to Rasel and suggests she marry him instead since he is clearly in love with him. He also tells her to not send any more “children” for her defense.
Out of spite, Raşel decides to marry Mordo. They have a lavish engagement, with Selim blessing the ceremony with his singing. During a particular scene, we see Rasel going to the restroom and checking if she got her period. Seeing that she hadn’t, and subsequent nausea that follows, confirms her fears that she’s pregnant. Even though Mordo is a nice guy, she has second thoughts about her marriage with him.
Matilda constantly tries to learn the truth behind Çelebi’s spite against her. One day, while rummaging through his office drawer, she finds the group photo, and figures that he might be related to the company.
She contacts the ex-employees of her father’s and asks them if the name Çelebi rang a bell. One of them inform her that ‘Çelebi’, in reality, is Aziz, who used to work for her father. She connects the dots and figures that he might have been working with Mumtaz.
The Club ending explained in detail:
Celebi’s feelings for Matilda
Matilda appears to have conquered the struggle with Çelebi, who is seen gathering his belongings and preparing to leave. She confronts him and accuses him of emotionally tormenting her in order to avenge the death of Mumtaz, her former boyfriend and the guy who deceived her family.
Çelebi ‘s true feelings are unknown, but he is surely fascinated with her, as evident by making a prostitute wear her earrings before they become sexual. In addition to that, he erupts in wrath when Orhan confronts him about his feelings for her.
Mixed emotions for Selim
Meanwhile, Selim, who is preparing for his first live radio broadcast, appears to be developing the attitude that accompanies popularity. He perceives the broadcast as a chance to reconcile with his family, who have shunned him because of his music.
However, just before the broadcast, the club learns of Selim’s father’s death, causing them to keep the news from him. Çelebi lets the news reach Selim, who is obviously upset, in an attempt to stifle Matilda.
Selim is reluctant to put on a performance when he learns the truth, but after speaking with Matilda, he agrees. He asks Matilda to spend the night with him because he has nobody else.
Did Mordo accept Raşel’s baby?
While Matilda chooses to stay with a friend who requires her assistance, her daughter Raşel appears to be dealing with her own troubles. She has known for a long time that she is carrying Ismet’s kid. She attempts to have an abortion but can’t convince herself to do it.
She subsequently misinterprets the reality for Mordo, who embraces it and assures her that they can flee to Israel so that the child does not grow up an orphan.
Raşel pushes Ismet to pursue his own ambition of touring the world, claiming that despite hurting her, he exposed her to the reality of life. She departs, having left Matilda behind, who had stayed only for her.
Matilda, on the other hand, has no clear reason to stay around now that Raşel and Çelebi have left, and her future remains undetermined.
Also Read: The Electrical Life of Louis Wain summary and ending explained