He attended the secondary school Royal College Port Louis and was then awarded a scholarship to study in France although he had also secured a scholarship to study in the UK as a "laureate" of the Higher School Certificate.
[4][5] Dan Callikan started his political career in 1973 as a member of the splinter group Mouvement Militant Mauricien Socialiste Progressiste (MMMSP).
[1] Callikan was a close associate of Sir Anerood Jugnauth and from 1983 he was a senior adviser at the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) during Sir Anerood Jugnauth's terms in office.
From 2009 to 2014 he was Director General of the MBC during Navin Ramgoolam's term in office as Prime Minister.
[1][7] In 2002, Callikan co-authored a book Mauritius Light and Space with Christian Bossu-Picat.