This small town in Karnataka is making heads turn because of its hair industry

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

Hair processing is a Rs 3,000-crore business in India which is not surprising at all. It’s not surprising then that hair processing is a Rs 3,000-crore business in India. Cities like New Delhi, Chennai, Elur in Andhra Pradesh, Bhagabanpur and Murshidabad in West Bengal, and Dig in Rajasthan are its major centres.Hair hub in Karnataka Apart from these cities, Bhagyanagar in Karnataka’s Koppal district is another place with a 70-year history of hair processing.

This small town lies 125km from Hubballi and 380km from Bengaluru. Although, it is the only hair processing centre in Karnataka but it accounts for 40% of the hair processed in India. Families that are today engaged in the hair processing business were committed to farming until independence.

But when their land was acquired for the Tungabhadra dam around 1950, they were resettled on the outskirts of Koppal at a place that was later named Bhagyanagar. Some of the newcomers received training in hair processing, and the firm saw some initial success. Only 5–6 hair processing businesses ran out of these homes in 1960.

With the gradual introduction of new equipment and technology, Bhagyanagar now boasts more than 200 hair processing facilities employing 6,000–8,000 people. Within a 25km radius, other units have appeared at Koppal city, Kinnal, Hiresindhogi, Alavandi, etc.From floor to foreign countries The hair processed in Bhagyanagar is shipped to China, Africa, and Myanmar where it is transformed into various wigs and hair extensions before being sent to Europe and America. This is due to the fact that «Indian hair quality is very good,» according to Muttanna Vaddar, a hair processing unit owner.