Rameswaram (pop. 38,035) is a major Hindu pilgrimage site in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Its holiness to Hindus is second only to that of Varanasi, in Uttar Pradesh. Rameswaram is on one of the series of islands, known as Adam's Bridge, that lie between the mainland of India and Sri Lanka. Rameswaram is connected to the Indian mainland by the Indira Gandhi Bridge, which opened in 1988.