Vikas Divyakirti

Last updated
Vikas Divyakirti
Vikas divyakirti.jpg
Born (1973-12-26) 26 December 1973 (age 51)
Bhiwani, Haryana, India
Nationality Indian
Alma mater Delhi University
Occupations
Known forCo-founding of Drishti IAS Institute
Spouse
Taruna Verma
​
(m. 1997)​
ChildrenSatwik Divyakirti
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2022–present
Subscribers3.97M [1]
Total views125M [1]
YouTube Silver Play Button 2.svg100,000 subscribers2022
YouTube Gold Play Button 2.svg1,000,000 subscribers2022
Last updated: 30 January 2025

Vikas Divyakirti (born 26 December 1973) is a former civil servant, educator, author and lecturer. He was a member of Central Secretariat Service [2] and is currently the entrepreneur and coaching head of the Drishti IAS Coaching Institute, a UPSC coaching institute based in Delhi.

Contents

Early life and education

Vikas Divyakirti was born on 26 December 1973 in Bhiwani, Haryana. He completed his early schooling in Hindi medium at Halwasia Vidhya Vihar. After completing his schooling, he studied at Zakir Husain Delhi College, pursuing a Bachelor of Commerce (honors) degree. However, he later changed his stream and pursued a Bachelor of Arts degree in History at University of Delhi. [3] [4] Later, he studied for postgraduate degree in Hindi Literature, scoring second rank in first year at Zakir Husain Delhi College and then migrated to Hindu College, Delhi in his final year, where he finally earned Master of Arts in 1995. [5] [6]

He later earned Bachelor of Laws from Faculty of Law, University of Delhi and then Master of Philosophy, [7] and also Doctor of Philosophy in Hindi literature [2] from University of Delhi. [8] [2]

Career

After completing his master's degree, Divyakirti started teaching at University of Delhi as an assistant professor. [3] Later, in 1996, he cleared the UPSC Civil Services Examination on his first attempt and got All India Rank (AIR) of 384 in 1996. After getting trained at Institute of Secretariat Training and Management, he was inducted into Central Secretariat Service [2] by Government of India. [2] He served as section officer [2] at Department of Official Language in Ministry of Home Affairs, New Delhi. [2]

He later resigned from service after a year and continued teaching. [9] In 1999, he founded Drishti IAS Coaching Institute in Mukherjee Nagar, Delhi. [3]

In November 2022, Divyakirti started his YouTube channel, which currently has over 3.93 M subscribers. [10] [11] In addition to his main channel, Vikas Divyakirti manages multiple other YouTube channels, including Drishti IAS, Drishti IAS English, Drishti Judiciary, Drishti PCS, Drishti Teaching Exams, Drishti IAS Shorts, Drishti CUET Hindi, Drishti CUET English, and Drishti Welfare Foundation. [12] In 2023, Divyakirti made an appearance in Vidhu Vinod Chopra's biographical drama film 12th Fail , playing himself. He also contributed to the scriptwriting for this film. [13]

This is a historic occasion. Perhaps for the first time, Hindi cinema has tried to touch the pulse of Hindi society at such a deep level. The story of Manoj Sharma, who became IPS despite once failing in 12th class, actually shakes every person who has accepted failure as his destiny in life. The film forces him to give himself another chance, to ‘restart’ his journey! [14] [11]

— Divyakirti on 12th Fail

Personal life

Vikas is married to Taruna Verma [5] and they have a son. He was nominated for Padma Awards in 2023. [15] Divyakirti is the follower of Arya Samaj and thus does not believe in caste system, his surname is the result of his parents' literary interests. [16]

Controversies

In 2022, Divyakirti faced major criticism over his comments about the Ramayana, quoting an author that after the war, Rama said to Sita, "I (Ram) did not fight this war for you (Sita) but for the respect of my lineage. Just as ghee licked by a dog is not fit for eating, you, Sita, are not fit for me." However he reacted on his criticism saying that He didn't read Ramayana in Sanskrit and it's not what Rama is saying but the authors point of view through Ram, which according to him the poet says their word through the character. And the clips didn't conclude his full words. [17] [18] Sadhvi Prachi shared a clip of his statement on X , demanding a ban on his coaching institute. Later, Divyakirti clarified his views in an interview with The Lallantop , stating that whatever he claimed in the video is supported by documents. [18]

The basement of his coaching "Drishti IAS" was sealed by municipal corporation of delhi for violating norms and illegal use of basement following deaths of multiple students in a similar coaching on 27 July 2024 [19]

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotesRef.
2023 12th Fail Himself [13]

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References

  1. 1 2 "About Vikas Divyakirti". YouTube.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "The Pied Pipers: Meet The Mafia Of India's Online Teaching Industry". Outlook (Indian magazine) . Archived from the original on 2024-03-01. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 "Meet Vikas Divyakirti, Who Cleared UPSC CSE In 1st Attempt But Left Job To Establish One Of India's Famous IAS Coaching Centres". Zee News . 13 August 2023. Archived from the original on 12 January 2024. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  4. ↑ Singh, Prashant (5 August 2022). "पहले ही अटेम्प्ट में UPSC निकालने के बाद कोचिंग क्यों पढ़ाने लगे डॉ. विकास दिव्यकीर्ति?". The Lallantop (in Hindi). India Today Group. Archived from the original on 12 January 2024. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  5. 1 2 Gupta, Archit (12 November 2022). "Dr. Vikas Divyakirti: जानें कौन हैं डॉ. विकास दिव्यकीर्ति जिनके मुरीद हैं लाखों UPSC उम्‍मीदवार". Navbharat Times (in Hindi). Archived from the original on 12 January 2024. Retrieved 21 November 2023.
  6. ↑ Baliarsingh, Cassian. "Vikas Divyakirti: Journey from IAS officer to founder of Drishti IAS". OdishaTV. Archived from the original on 2024-01-12. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  7. ↑ "Dr Vikas Divyakirti: From IAS success to educational leadership in UPSC coaching". Daijiworld Media . Retrieved 24 July 2024.
  8. ↑ "Controversy over Dr Vikas Divyakriti's statement on Sita: 'I have proof'". Hindustan Times . Retrieved 24 July 2024.
  9. ↑ "Meet Dr Vikas Divyakirti, man who quit IAS to become teacher; internet sensation has millions of followers on..." DNA . 28 July 2023. Archived from the original on 12 January 2024. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  10. ↑ "Vikas Divyakirti". YouTube. Archived from the original on 12 January 2024. Retrieved 23 December 2024.
  11. 1 2 Nibandh, Vinod (6 January 2024). "Trending Post '12th Fail', IAS Guru Vikas Divyakirti Says 'Rumours Fly Like Dust..' | Read Inspiring Quotes". News18 . Archived from the original on 12 January 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  12. ↑ Patel, Rutvik (2024-06-23). "Dr. Vikas Divyakirti - Biography, Works, and Contributions". vikasdivyakirtitalks. Retrieved 2024-06-23.
  13. 1 2 "Vikas Divyakirti, a real-life UPSC prof, to play himself in Vikrant Massey-starrer '12th Fail'". Times Of India . 6 October 2023. Archived from the original on 12 January 2024. Retrieved 22 November 2023.
  14. ↑ Sur, Prateek (5 October 2023). "World Teacher's Day: Real-Life UPSC Professor Vikas Divyakirti To Play Himself In Vikrant Massey's '12th Fail'". Outlook India . Archived from the original on 12 January 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  15. ↑ "Nominations/Recommendations for Padma Awards 2023" (PDF). Government of India . Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-03-01. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
  16. ↑ Vijay, Pankaj (14 October 2023). "विकास सर का सरनेम दिव्यकीर्ति क्यों, उनके दोनों सगे भाइयों का सरनेम उनसे अलग क्यों, बताई वजह". Hindustan (in Hindi). HT Media. Archived from the original on 12 January 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  17. ↑ "Drishti IAS founder Vikas Divyakirti faces criticism for comparing Sita with a 'ghee licked by dog'". The Economic Times . 11 November 2022. Archived from the original on 12 January 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  18. 1 2 Ghosh, Poulomi (12 November 2022). "Controversy over Dr Vikas Divyakriti's statement on Sita: 'I have proof'". Hindustan Times . Archived from the original on 12 January 2024. Retrieved 22 November 2023.
  19. ↑ "Drishti IAS centre's basement sealed in Delhi amid row over students' death". India Today. July 29, 2024.


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