Tirumala’s renovated Sri Venkateswara Museum opens to devotees on 16 November at Rs 50; free trial visits resume 10 November

The renovated Sri Venkateswara Museum in Tirumala opens to devotees on Monday, 16 November, Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) has announced, and each visitor will pay Rs 50 to get in. Until then, only a few groups of visitors can walk through its galleries, free, as part of a trial run.

TTD had said in October that the museum would open to devotees in early November. The trial was later set to end on 4 November, and a TTD notice on 5 November pushed that to 15 November. The trial is paused for maintenance work on Sunday, 8 November and Monday, 9 November, TTD said in a notice on 7 November. From Tuesday, 10 November to Sunday, 15 November, 10 am-5 pm, TTD employees and journalists with their families, Srivari Sevaks, and students from TTD and other institutions can visit without a ticket.

Fourteen galleries, 8,000 exhibits

Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu inaugurated the revamped museum on 16 September, during the annual Srivari Brahmotsavams. The museum first opened in 1998 and has been rebuilt with the support of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). It now has 14 galleries on four floors and more than 8,000 exhibits. In August 2023, TTD said TCS was taking up the 14 galleries at a cost of Rs 125 crore on a donation basis.

The displays take visitors through the Lord’s jewels in digital form, temple art and sculpture, Annamayya’s copper plates, rare coins, temple architecture, devotees and donors, weapons, musical instruments, puja articles and the Vedas, using holograms, 360-degree sound and interactive screens. Chief Museum Officer Somannarayana said on 13 October that the high-tech Brahmandam gallery would be a major draw, and that tickets would be offered on the TTD website.

Before you go

The public opening falls on the day of the annual Srivari Pushpayagam, which TTD has listed for 16 November at the Tirumala temple, with its Ankurarpanam on 15 November. TTD’s notices fix the Rs 50 fee but do not yet give the museum’s visiting hours for the general public from 16 November.