The divine laddoo of Tirupati

There is one Prasad which everyone who goes to Tirupati Balaji does come back with – the ubiquitous but extremely delicious laddoo. This prasad, probably the only with a GI tag, which denotes exclusivity to the temple is an industry in itself for the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam, the temple board. The richest temple of India, for FY17 budget,  TTD  has estimated revenue from offerings at more than Rs1,000 crore and Rs175 crore from laddoo sales.

The sheer logistics of this laddoo is mind boggling. Every single day, 5,000 kalyana laddus (750-gram massive laddus given to devotees who buy the special Kalynotsavam seva tickets) and about 2-3 lakh proktam laddus (175-gram laddus) are made.

The making of the laddoo is written down to absolute precision - the 750-gram special laddu should have 23.5 grams of cashew, 12.5 grams of raisins, 8.2 grams almonds, and 6.2 grams of sugar candy and moisture content should be only 12%.  And this are made in very hi-tech kitchens where electric and gas stoves are used to fry  the boondis and the fried boondi is carried into the kitchen on a conveyor belt! While the laddoos are being mixed with the ingredients, some 200 Brahmin priests stand along a 500-by-30-foot steel table, making the laddus under the gaze of CCTV cameras.

So next time you get to taste this divine prasad, be assured that you now know the finer intricacies of how it is made.