A Brief History of Voice Notes

Whatever form of communication is made with me, I respond in voice notes but never send one unprompted,

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" says Anirudh Suresan, 28, a tax consultant in Delhi. Audio messages also privilege the senders over the receivers. Many criticize the format as "self-serving" or even "selfish," as it demands not just the listener's time and attention, but also the right conditions—earphones, privacy and often, the right emotional headspace. Jayashankar Vengathattil, 30, a strategy professional from Bengaluru, says, "The only time I send voice notes is to substitute them for a work call. I'm fine receiving long ones from loved ones, but they'll usually get excited texts in return. I communicate much better through the written word than the spoken one."

THE GENDER OF EXPRESSION While speaking to respondents for this piece, a pattern quickly emerged: women were far more likely to prefer voice notes. Men who used them regularly were the exception, raising a larger question: does gender shape how we express ourselves, even in private? "Women are far better communicators, so they can condense their thoughts in a more precise manner in voice notes, which guys find themselves unable to do," says Suresan, who defaults to texts.

Our female respondents described voice notes as emotional scaffolding, used to vent, encourage, confess, and care, most often with close female friends in WhatsApp groups. (They sent voice notes to men too, but these were typically shorter and more direct.) Shilpa Phadke, sociologist and co-author of