El privilegio de amar (Literal English translation: The Privilege to Love, International English title: The Right to Love) is a Mexican telenovela produced by Carla Estrada for Televisa.^[1] It aired on Canal de las Estrellas from July 27, 1998 to February 26, 1999. El privilegio de amar is a remake of the 1985 Venezuelan telenovela Cristal.^[2] El privilegio de amar is the highest-rated television program in Mexico to date;^[3] it registered an average of 34.8 percent of TV audience.^[4] The telenovela received the TVyNovelas Award for Best Telenovela in 1999.

The telenovela tells the story of Luciana, a fashion designer who begins searching for the daughter she abandoned years earlier, unaware that the girl is none other than Cristina, a model in Luciana's fashion house who has fallen in love with her stepson.

It stars Adela Noriega, Helena Rojo, Andrés García, Enrique Rocha, René Strickler, Cynthia Klitbo, Nuria Bages and César Évora.

The young seminarian Juan de la Cruz (Andrés Gutiérrez) arrives for a visit at the home of his mother, Ana Joaquina (Diana Bracho), a religious fanatic who has always imposed her will upon her son and pushed him to serve God. Working in Ana Joaquina's house is the young Luciana (Edith Márquez), a naive and dreamy girl who falls in love with Juan de la Cruz.

One night, carried away by youthful passion, they tenderly and innocently give in to their desires. Upon discovering that Luciana is pregnant, Ana Joaquina demands to know the identity of the child's father; when Luciana admits that it is Juan de la Cruz, Ana Joaquina fires Luciana, leaving her destitute.

After giving birth to a daughter, Luciana leaves her baby on the doorstep of a wealthy house with the hope that the little girl will be raised there, but she is instead taken to an orphanage. In order to survive, Luciana becomes involved with many undesirable men, including Pedro Trujillo (Pedro Weber "Chatanuga"), a terrible man who beats and abuses her.

Twenty years later, Cristina (Adela Noriega), Luciana's daughter, has grown up happily in the orphanage, although she has always been curious to know who her mother was; meanwhile, Luciana (Helena Rojo) is the owner of a popular fashion house and the wife of the well-known actor Andrés Duval (Andrés García), with whom she has two children, Lizbeth (Adriana Nieto) and Víctor Manuel (René Strickler).

Lizbeth, who is Luciana and Andrés' daughter, is whimsical and spoiled because she is accustomed to always having what she wants, while Víctor Manuel, who is Andrés' son from his first marriage, is like a son to Luciana and works at her fashion house.

Her happy and caring family makes Luciana begin searching for the daughter she abandoned many years ago; however, her family knows nothing about Cristina because Luciana has never revealed a single detail about her past out of fear of her husband's reaction. Cristina, upon leaving the orphanage, rents a small apartment along with Lorenza (Sabine Moussier) and Maclovia (Isadora González).

Lorenza is a beautiful young woman, provocative and very self-confident, whereas Maclovia is reserved, timid and intelligent. Lorenza meets Andrés and they become lovers as Andrés comes to desire the passion and love that Luciana never gave him; meanwhile, thanks to Lorenza, Cristina obtains a job as a model in Luciana's fashion house.

Cristina and Víctor Manuel fall in love and begin to date, but when Luciana learns about their relationship, she fires Cristina and tries to convince her son that he should marry Tamara (Cynthia Klitbo), who traps him with the lie that she is expecting a baby of his when, in fact, that baby is from Nicolás Obregón (Enrique Rocha), a friend of Andrés.

Cristina finds out that she is pregnant by Víctor Manuel but decides to remain silent out of respect for the family that he has formed. At this point, Alonso (Toño Mauri) comes into Cristina's life, offering her a name for her daughter and love for her; however, Cristina cannot reciprocate his feelings because she does not love him.

Over time, Cristina begins to fight for her daughter and becomes a very successful woman. The status that she little by little gains as a model unites her again with Víctor Manuel who, living a hellish life with Tamara, plans to leave her in order to be happy with Cristina and thus be able to enjoy together The Right to Love.