Review by siderite

Nipah is a horrible thing, it kills 70% of infected yet sometimes it shows no symptoms, a fearsome combination. This film is an investigative drama based on real events from 2018 in Kerala, where this bat virus started to infect and spread in the human population. I believe this is the first Indian film I've seen in decades and I was pleasantly surprised. The actors are doing a good job, the story is scientifically interesting. However, I have to say that most of the characters were not fleshed out well, making it difficult to remember who is who and what is their role in the story.

One of the reasons for tension is the meddling of the Ministry of Defence who wants at all costs to portray the outbreak as a terrorist attack. Medics and investigators must hurry not only to determine the course of the outbreak and identify the carriers in time, but also bring evidence that it wasn't a malevolent act so that the investigation remains in the hands of medical personnel. Another is the way scientists and government people need to approach poor and sometimes violent communities of people who do not trust them.

For a non-Indian, their way of shaking the head when they want to make a point seems a bit silly and it takes out some of the tension in a story that should be by all accounts terrifying. Also funny to hear them go into English, then back again to Malayalam in the same sentence, like it's the most normal thing in the world. And that while discussing between ministry people.

All in all a nice movie, feeling modern, showing both an interesting outbreak story and providing glimpses into the Indian culture.