The UPSC Podcast

The UPSC Podcast from Sapien Happy takes an unusual approach that some aspirants will love and others might find too simple -- it is essentially an audiobook version of the Spectrum Modern History textbook (23rd Edition). The host reads through chapters at a steady pace, and the idea is that you either listen along while reading or use the episodes at 1.5x speed for revision. Across 10 episodes ranging from 8 to 37 minutes, the show covers critical Modern History territory: the Simon Commission, Nehru Report, Civil Disobedience Movement, Round Table Conferences, the emergence of Swarajists and socialist ideas, and Congress rule in the provinces. These are bread-and-butter Prelims and Mains topics that every aspirant needs to nail. The production is about as minimal as it gets. No background music, no commentary, no analysis -- just a clean reading of the text. Some people will find this boring. But if you have ever wished someone would just read Spectrum to you while you jog or commute, this is exactly that. It is also useful for visual learners who want to reinforce what they read by hearing it spoken aloud. The show has not been updated since September 2020, and it covers only a portion of the Spectrum textbook. You will not find post-independence history or the freedom movement's later phases here. Still, for the chapters it does cover, having an audio version you can replay on demand is genuinely handy. Treat it as a targeted revision tool for the specific Modern History chapters it addresses.