He was appointed director general of radio, television, and film in the Ministry of Information, a position which he held until 1969, when he began to serve as chairman of the Jakarta Arts Council [id] (1969–1972).

He served as a director for the Social Studies Training Centre at the Hasanuddin University in Makassar (1975–1976) and as a member of the MPRS (People's Consultative Assembly).

[3] When he was the general director of radio and television, he was credited with helping to make the Indonesian film industry competitive.

[8] Nino Kayam [id], singer and songwriter known for his work with pop group RAN, is his grandson.

[9] Umar Kayam died at 69 years old at March 16, 2002 at 07:45 AM at Jakarta from an intestinal bleeding disease.