Aditi Rao Hydari and Siddharth recently tied the knot in an intimate wedding at Telangana’s 400-year-old Sri Ranganayaka Swamy Temple. The actor-couple surprised their fans by dropping several photos from their simple ceremony. Along with the actor’s traditional jewellery, the large rocks on her finger – her engagement ring – caught people’s eyes. Known as the Toi et Moi ring, jewellery designer Archana Aggarwal says, “It translates to ‘You and Me’. This design signifies the union of two individuals. It represents their shared journey and the unique bond they’ve created.” She went on to add that the two stones typically used in this type of ring symbolise love’s duality and two separate souls coming together as one.

Tarang Arora, Creative Director and CEO of Amrapali Jewels, explains, “This ring is often used as an engagement or wedding ring, serving as a reminder of the love and commitment shared between the couple.”

This ring dates back to the 18th century but became rampant after the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte gave it to his beloved wife, Empress of France Josephine de Beauharnais in 1796. The ring featured a sapphire and a diamond set side by side like two lovers. While their marriage was annulled in 1810, the Toi et Moi ring came to symbolise eternal love and unity. In 2013 this ring was sold for $949,000 (INR 7,93,55,759), more than 45 times its estimate.

Originally, Arora explains that Toi et Moi rings featured a pear-shaped diamond and sapphire. However, nowadays, people use a variety of stones, including diamonds and emeralds, like the one sported by the Former First Lady of the United States Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Then a Senator, the Former President of the US, John F Kennedy proposed to his wife in 1953 with a 2.88-carat diamond-and-emerald engagement ring from Van Cleef & Arpels. Arora shares, “I’ve had clients who opted for versions with only coloured stones. It comes down to personal preference.”

Aggarwal adds, “Couples can also personalise their rings by selecting stones that hold a special meaning to them or represent significant moments in their relationship. They could add birthstones or even heirloom pieces, too.”

This is not the first time that Toi et Moi rings have created headlines, as they are popular among celebrity couples. In 2018, model and actor Emily Ratajkowski married producer Sebastian Bear-McClard, who presented her with a Toi et Moi engagement ring months after their wedding. When the couple divorced in 2022, she got her famous engagement ring redesigned into, what she dubbed, ‘Divorce Rings’.

The model’s Toi et Moi ring featured a massive three-carat pear-shaped diamond and a two-carat, princess-cut diamond. The ring was created by jewellery designer Alison Chemla, who also worked with her to repurpose the massive stones into something that will “represent my own personal evolution”. In an interview, the model told Vogue, “I don’t think a woman should be stripped of her diamonds just because she’s losing a man.”

In 2021, rapper Travis Scott gifted his then-girlfriend, entrepreneur and reality TV star Kylie Jenner and their daughter, Stormi Webster, matching Toi et Moi rings. Each ring had a pear-cut diamond and an emerald-cut stone. “Daddy got us matching rings,” Jenner captioned a photo, where she showed off the rings on her daughter’s and her hands. Kylie’s ginormous stones are estimated to be around 5 to 6 carats, while Stormi’s diamonds appear to be 1.5 carats each, reported Page Six.