Eşref Kolçak was born on January 28, 1927 in Erzurum. In 1941, he came to Istanbul. He entered the Sultanahmet Art Institute but did not finish. He worked as a carpenter and shoe repairman. In 1944 he appeared on stage in Atilla Revue and in 1945 in Ses Operetta. In 1947, he made his first movie. Throughout his artistic life, he starred in 180 movies and television series. He was the father of pop music artist Harun Kolçak. Harun Kolçak, who was being treated for cancer, passed away in 2017.