After graduating from college, Ashok Selvan sought opportunities in films as an actor and auditioned for roles including in
Prakash Raj's production
Inidhu Inidhu and
Bharat Bala's
19th Step but was rejected. During the period, he applied to work as an assistant director to
S. J. Surya and was given the opportunity to feature in a few scenes as
Suriya's friend in the director's venture
7aam Arivu, though his scenes did not make the final version. He was also featured in the title card of
Chakri Toleti's
Billa 2, with a childhood picture of Ashok Selvan used to represent a younger version of
Ajith Kumar's titular character. He then also auditioned unsuccessfully for a role in
Pizza, before Nalan Kumarasamy offered him the role of Kesavan in his
black comedy film,
Soodhu Kavvum (2013) after seeing him in a commercial. Featuring alongside an ensemble cast including
Vijay Sethupathi,
Bobby Simha and
Sanchita Shetty,
Soodhu Kavvum became a commercial success, with Ashok Selvan being described as "fantastic" in his role of an unemployed graduate. Ashok Selvan was then selected to replace
Vaibhav in Deepan Chakravarthy's psychological thriller
Pizza II: Villa, a second film in
C. V. Kumar's
Pizza franchise. Portraying an English novel writer in the film, the film told the story of eerie happenings in a villa owned by Ashok Selvan's character. To portray the role of a 30-year-old writer, he gained weight and grew a beard within two weeks. The film opened to positive reviews and above average box office collections, with a critic noting that "Ashok delivers an outstanding performance". He collaborated with C. V. Kumar again in his third film,
Thegidi, a murder mystery story directed by another newcomer P.Ramesh. Portraying a detective, Ashok Selvan featured opposite
Janani Iyer, and won positive reviews for his acting in the film. A critic from
Sify.com noted he "is subtle and conveys a lot through his body language and pleasing face", while another reviewer wrote "he seems to be quite proficient". In 2017, he starred in
Kootathil Oruthan, which deals with the love story of a middle bencher and its trailer has had a very positive reaction from the audience and the media. His film
Sila Samayangalil directed by
Priyadharshan was released in
Netflix and made its way to the final round at
Golden Globes. The film tells the story of eight characters who arrive at a pathology lab at 9a.m. to give their blood for an AIDS test. However, it all ends at 5p.m. when the results arrive. He is acting in a movie titled
Oxygen directed by
Ananda Krishnan and
Nenjamellam Kadhal directed by Nirman.
Oh My Kadavule was released on 14 Feb 2020 and was produced by his own banner Happy High Pictures in association with Axess Film Factory.
Oh My Kadavule received positive reviews from critics and was a blockbuster hit at the box office. The movie star cast also includes
Ritika Singh and
Vani Bhojan. Ashok Selvan made his
Telugu cinema debut with the film
Ninnila Ninnila directed by Ani. I. V. Sasi in 2021 co-starring
Ritu Varma and
Nithya Menen. He made his
Malayalam cinema debut with an antagonistic role through
Marakkar: Arabikadalinte Simham in 2021. In 2022, Ashok Selvan delivered a solid performance in
Sila Nerangalil Sila Manidhargal, which both received a positive response from critics, followed by the adult comedy film
Manmadha Leelai, directed by
Venkat Prabhu. He also appeared in the comedy horror,
Hostel and the mystery thriller
Vezham. He has play a triple role in the romantic drama
Nitham Oru Vaanam. He starred in
Por Thozhil (2023), which was well received,
Saba Nayagan (2023) and
Blue Star (2024) with versatile performances in each film. His two romantic comedies followed, titled
Pon Ondru Kanden (2024) and
Emakku Thozhil Romance (2024). == Personal life ==