An oonjal is a swing that is typically anchored to the ceiling of a room - using iron link chains and the bottom is a wooden

plank Plank may refer to: *Plank (wood), flat, elongated, and rectangular timber with parallel faces *Plank (exercise), an isometric exercise for the abdominal muscles * Martins Creek (Kentucky), the location of Plank post office * ''The Plank'' (1967 fi ...

. This used to be a popular item of

furniture Furniture refers to movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating (e.g., stools, chairs, and sofas), eating (tables), storing items, eating and/or working with an item, and sleeping (e.g., beds and hammocks). Fu ...

in most

southern Indian South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territo ...

houses. They have been not as popular as houses give way to

flats Flat or flats may refer to: Architecture * Flat (housing), an apartment in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and other Commonwealth countries Arts and entertainment * Flat (music), a symbol () which denotes a lower pitch * Flat (soldier), ...

. There is a popular wedding ritual in which the bride and groom sit on an oonjal decorated with

flowers A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

and receive blessings. Particularly, it is prominent hanging in the houses of

Indian Tamil Indian Tamils may refer to: * Tamil people from or living in India * Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka are Tamil people of Indian origin in Sri Lanka. They are also known as Malayaga Tamilar, Hill Country Tamils, Up-Country ...

families.

References

{{reflist Swing rides