Wedding carnival in Keralam’s Guruvayur: 367 couples tie the knot in a single day

The temple town of Guruvayur once again witnessed a spectacular wedding rush on the second Sunday of the Malayalam month of Chingam (August 30, 2026), with hundreds of couples tying the knot amid seamless coordination by the Devaswom, police and other government agencies.

By 1 p.m., as many as 367 marriages, including spot bookings, had been solemnised at the Guruvayur Sreekrishna Temple.

With Devaswom chairman A.V. Gopinath and administrator S. Harigopal taking the lead, Devaswom employees and police personnel joined hands to manage the massive rush, turning another hectic Sunday into a smooth and well-coordinated affair.

The wedding count had crossed 100 as early as 7 a.m. With schools closed for the Onam holidays, the temple also witnessed a heavy rush of devotees for darshan, adding to the pressure on the temple town.

A special passage was arranged for devotees seeking darshan from in front of the Deepasthambham. The route was opened from the East Nada through the area near the Melpathur Auditorium, helping regulate the flow of devotees. The arrangements remained in place except during the intervals when the temple sanctum was closed for rituals.

Wedding ceremonies had begun as early as 4 a.m. and continued without a break at all six marriage mandapams.

By 11.10 a.m., 362 of the 372 marriages scheduled in advance had been completed. The total number rose to 367 by 1 p.m. with the inclusion of spot bookings.

The police took charge of traffic and crowd management across the temple town. The municipality, too, strengthened its arrangements by deploying additional staff for the registration of marriages.

With hundreds of couples arriving with their families and devotees thronging the temple for darshan, Guruvayur witnessed yet another Sunday where meticulous planning and collective effort helped turn an overwhelming rush into a grand and orderly kalyanappooram (festival of weddings).