IAS officer Abhishek Singh is adept at juggling two challenging fields at the same time. The 2011-batch officer is as much known for his acting as for his civil service career. He is currently posted as Deputy Commissioner in Delhi but has starred in several music videos that got views in crores. He’s also finished working on the web series, Delhi Crime 2, which is due for release soon.
After achieving popularity with his music videos and successfully finishing the web series, Mr. Singh is now all set to make his debut in feature films. However, as his acting career is growing, news of him leaving IAS is also doing the rounds.
Indian Masterminds got in touch with the officer to find out whether it is true that he is quitting IAS to focus on movies, and not only did he readily reply to this question, but also gave us a lot of information about his upcoming acting projects.
NOT GOING TO LEAVE IAS
A recent report in a national daily newspaper that Mr. Abhishek Singh would leave IAS sparked a barrage of phone calls and messages to the officer from well-wishers, colleagues, and journalists. Indian Masterminds, too, spoke to the officer and he outrightly denied entertaining such thoughts. He revealed that he was getting a lot of calls ever since the news report was published, but, in the same breath, he said that it was just a rumour. He categorically told us that he would always like to be remembered as a bureaucrat first, and then an actor!
“Acting happened accidentally. I didn’t plan for it. But I am enjoying it thoroughly. It’s a different world with equally varied experiences. Even if this profession gives me all the popularity one can crave for, I would always like to be remembered as an IAS officer rather than an actor,” Mr. Singh told Indian Masterminds.
MANAGING BOTH WELL
When asked how he manages both civil service work and acting, he said, “If we learn to prioritize things in our life then everything becomes easy. I am fortunate that I have got the opportunity to cherish both my passion and hobby together. It indeed gets hectic sometimes and I have to take off, but I am managing quite well till now.”
He also hopes that the youth will learn from him that nothing is impossible. He said, “In today’s world, a multi-dimensional and comprehensive growth is a must. One can never be stereotyped. A person can be a cop and an artist at the same time.”
IAS OFFICER IN DELHI CRIME 2
Mr. Singh has done three music videos with B Praak, Jubin Nautiyal and Badsaah respectively. All of them have been a huge success. He is also playing his on-field role of an IAS officer in Delhi Crime 2, a web series. Talking about his characters and experiences till now, he said, “My first video, Dil tod ke, had so many elements from my own personal life. In Delhi Crime also, I am playing a role of IAS officer, which is my identity. You can say that till now, I have mostly played characters which resonate with me.”
TO STAR IN FEATURE FILM
The officer will be seen next in the remake of National Award winning and critically acclaimed movie, Shool, where he will be playing the role of a police officer.
“The film is still in the pre-production phase. Many characters including the female lead is still to be cast. Tara Sutaria might be the choice, but final decision is yet to be made. The shoot will start from May end,” he informed.
He also said that since the previous character was played by Manoj Bajpayee and replicating an actor of his stature is a difficult job, he has already started the preparation and is hopeful that his real-life experiences will help him in the movie.
