Spotify’s latest original podcast ‘Virus 2062’ led by ‘Mirzapur’ actor Ali Fazal and ‘Gangs of Wesseypur’ actress Richa Chadha has been released today on the audio streaming service.
You may already be aware that a Podcast is an episodic series of spoken words focused on a particular subject ranging from spiritual discussions, travel, sports, business, etc., and also includes fiction storytelling, which the Hindi language podcast ‘Virus 2062’ belongs to.
‘Virus 2062’ is a science fiction psychological thriller set in the near distant future in the year 2022. The story is narrated in the form of voice recordings of interactions between a psychiatrist Dr. Gayatri (voiced by Richa Chadha) and his patient Peter (voiced by Ali Fazal). Their sessions have been presented in ten episodes with an average runtime of 15-16 minutes each.
The bulk of the proceedings take place inside a psychiatric facility where Peter tells Dr. Gayatri that he has time-traveled from the year 2062 to 2022. The seemingly psychotic man further confesses that he was sent back in time to save the world by preventing ‘Patient Zero’ from globally spreading a future, mutated version of the Coronavirus unaffected by any vaccine.
The podcast starts off brilliantly at a breakneck pace. The narrative relaxes somewhere around halfway then again picks up pace before its mind-bending finale. The essential ingredient of the element of suspense is present throughout. Voice modulations by Ali Fazal and Richa Chadha are commendable and so is the judicious use of sound effects, which obviously play an important role in a fiction podcast.
Adapted from Julio Rojas’s ‘Caso 63’, ‘the plot of ‘Virus 2062’ is a beautiful, well-researched, and incredibly detailed reimagination of pandemic’s aftermath while also incorporating compelling science fiction elements to the narrative. The plot apparently draws inspiration from some cult science fiction films such as ‘12 Monkeys’, ‘I am Legend’, and its psychological drama elements are reminiscent of ‘Silence of the Lambs’.
Podcasts, particularly fiction ones, are a largely untapped market in India. However, like their audio-visual OTT counterparts, Podcast platforms in India have witnessed a rapid surge after the pandemic. As per PwC’s Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2020 report, India is the third-largest consumer of podcasts after the US and China, with north of 57 million monthly listeners.
We are hopeful that the Indian podcast boom would encourage more Indian actors and voice artists to come forward and Ali Fazal and Richa Chadha’s riveting podcast ‘Virus 2062’ is a step in the right direction. It’s currently being streamed on Spotify for free.
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