IAS Officer Ashwani Kumar Makes Acting Debut With ‘Devyani’ After Career In Administration

IAS officer Ashwani Kumar, a 2010-batch civil servant currently serving in Assam, is making his acting debut with the film Devyani, taking his public service experience into cinema through a story centred on a father's concerns for his daughter and the broader theme of women's empowerment. Kumar has spent most of his professional career working in government administration, policy implementation and institutional reforms. He currently serves as Secretary to the Assam government's Information Technology Department and as Director of DITEC.

His decision to appear in a film marks a new avenue through which he hopes to engage with social issues beyond the conventional tools of governance. For Kumar, the move into acting is not intended as a shift away from public service or an attempt to pursue celebrity status. Instead, he views storytelling as another way of encouraging social change. The film Devyani explores questions surrounding daughters, family expectations and women's strength, themes that Kumar believes can reach audiences in a way that government programmes and institutional interventions sometimes cannot.

“Government can build institutions, create programmes, and change rules, but how do you change deep-seated societal attitudes?” Kumar said, explaining his motivation for taking up the acting role. He believes that social transformation requires changes not only in laws and institutions but also in the attitudes and beliefs that influence everyday decisions within families and communities. Kumar said cinema can provide a different platform for conversations about social issues.

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“Not every change begins with a policy. Some changes begin with a story,” he said. According to him, a film can encourage audiences to reconsider established attitudes and create discussions within families about issues that may otherwise remain difficult to address. Devyani focuses on a father's concerns for his daughter while incorporating themes of women's empowerment. Through its narrative, the film seeks to examine family relationships and the importance of recognising women's abilities and agency.

Kumar's involvement gives the project an unusual connection to the world of public administration, where he has worked on policy and institutional initiatives. His acting debut also reflects his belief that public service can extend beyond formal government responsibilities. While administrative work can create programmes, institutions and regulations, Kumar argues that changing social attitudes requires sustained engagement at the community and individual levels. In this context, he sees cinema as a complementary medium for communicating ideas and encouraging reflection.

Kumar's current responsibilities in Assam's Information Technology Department and DITEC remain part of his professional career, while Devyani represents a separate creative endeavour focused on social storytelling. His transition from government offices to a film set has therefore been presented not as a career change but as an additional platform for addressing issues he considers important. The film's focus on women's empowerment is particularly significant for Kumar, who hopes its message will resonate with families and encourage a more positive understanding of daughters and women's capabilities.

Rather than measuring the project's success only through commercial recognition, he said he would consider it worthwhile if the story prompted even one family to reconsider its attitudes. “Some changes begin with a story,” Kumar said, underlining his belief that storytelling can complement institutional efforts to bring about social change. With Devyani, the IAS officer is attempting to use a new medium to address an issue that extends beyond government policy — the need for deeper changes in how society views women and daughters.

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