Mandap
The canopy on four pillars under which a Hindu or Jain wedding ceremony takes place.
Also: mandapa, wedding canopy
A mandap is a temporary pavilion, traditionally of four posts and a roof, set up for a wedding. The couple, their parents and the priest sit inside it around the sacred fire. It is the most heavily decorated part of an Indian wedding. Pillars are wrapped in flowers and the roof hung with strings of marigold, jasmine, tuberose and roses. In South India, whole banana plants with their fruit are tied to the entrance. Modern mandaps use orchids, hydrangeas and fabric as well.