Over 12 lakh devotees offer hair at Tirumala in May
Driven by an unprecedented summer influx, over 12.4 lakh pilgrims offer hair at Tirumala; TTD extends barber shifts to cut down wait times
Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh): Over 12 lakh devotees offered hair to Sri Venkateswara Swamy at Tirumala temple through ritual tonsuring in May, which TTD sells to earn around Rs 150 crore per annum.
Until May 27 this year, more than 12.4 lakh devotees offered their hair, compared to 10.6 lakh in May 2024 and 10.1 lakh in May 2025, an official release from the temple body said on Thursday.
“The Black Gold (hair) deposits have seen a significant increase. Until May 27 this year, as many as 12,43,063 devotees offered their hair,” the release said.
Owing to the summer vacation and continuous weekend rush, Tirumala has been witnessing an unprecedented inflow of pilgrims. From May 18 to May 23, more than 50,000 devotees offered hair each day. On May 23 alone, 57,580 devotees offered their hair as part of fulfilment of their oath, the release added.
To minimise waiting time and provide convenient access to devotees, TTD has established multiple Kalyanakatta (tonsuring) centres across Tirumala through dedicated services by barbers.
A total of 1,152 barbers are rendering services to devotees at Tirumala, including 269 women barbers while the temple body has taken special measures to provide hygienic and comfortable tonsuring services, the release said.
“Each barber normally tonsures around 40 devotees during a six-hour shift. In view of the increased pilgrim rush, TTD has increased the tonsuring hours in their shifts for around 250 barbers, enabling each barber to serve approximately 50 more devotees, thereby ensuring uninterrupted services,” it said.
Keeping in view the heavy pilgrim turnout, TTD has further strengthened sanitation measures, drinking water facilities, seating arrangements, and token systems at all tonsuring centres to ensure a comfortable and spiritually fulfilling experience for the devotees, the release added.
