Kundan, Polki and Jadau: What Is the Difference?

These get confused constantly, including inside the trade.

Kundan

Refers to the technique — highly refined gold foil used to set stones without prongs.

Polki

Refers to the stone — uncut, unpolished natural diamond in its natural form.

Jadau

Refers to the craft of embedding stones into gold, of which kundan setting is a part.

Why it matters for staff

A customer asking for polki wants a stone. One asking for kundan wants a look. Selling the wrong one is the most common showroom mistake.