Zabranena Lyubov (Forbidden Love) is a soap opera

Soap opera

A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...

 filmed in Bulgaria

Bulgaria

Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

. Its broadcasting started on 5 October 2008, at 20:00 on Nova Television

Nova Television

Nova Television is the first Bulgarian commercial television network launched on July 16, 1994....

 and its first season ended on 5 June 2009.The soap opera is based on the Australian TV series Sons and Daughters

Sons and Daughters (Australian TV series)

Sons and Daughters was a Logie Award winning Australian soap opera created by Reg Watson and produced by the Reg Grundy Organisation between 1981 and 1987. The first episode aired in December 1981, during the Christmas/New Year non-ratings period, and the official broadcast date of the final...

.

The soap opera rotates around two Sofia

Sofia

Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...

 families, the affluent Konstantinovs and the low-income Belevs, who are mainly linked together by a central theme of love. It not only deals with the love of siblings who are unaware of each other, but also life in contemporary Bulgarian

Bulgaria

Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

 society. It has tackled controversial issues during its first season such as: murder

Murder

Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...

, arson

Arson

Arson is the crime of intentionally or maliciously setting fire to structures or wildland areas. It may be distinguished from other causes such as spontaneous combustion and natural wildfires...

, kidnapping

Kidnapping

In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...

, abortion

Abortion

Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...

, homosexuality

Homosexuality

Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...

, rape

Rape

Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...

, teacher-pupil relations and so on.

Its second season will start in autumn of 2009. Bulgaria

Bulgaria

Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

's current Prime Minister Boyko Borisov

Boyko Borisov

Boyko Metodiev Borisov is a Bulgarian politician who has been Prime Minister of Bulgaria since July 2009. Previously he was Mayor of Sofia from 8 November 2005 until his election as Prime Minister....

 also had a part in one episode as himself.

Characters

The main protagonists consist of two families, the Konstantinovs and the Belevs.

Character	Actor	Background
Anastasiya Konstantinova	Diana Lyubenova
Boris Konstantinov	Todor Tanchev
Martin Konstantinov	Nikolay Iliev
Elitsa Konstantinova	Sanya Borisova
Yavor Belev	Fahradin Fahradinov
Dimitar Belev	Ivaylo Geraskov
Nadezhda Beleva	Albena Stavreva
Filip Belev	Plamen Dimov Plamen Dimov Plamen Dimov is a Bulgarian soccer player, currently playing for Chernomorets Pomorie as a midlfielder.- External links :...
Marina Beleva	Iliyana Kodzhabasheva