Dehla Pakad is the partner card game where every dehla (ten) matters. Two teams of two, one hidden hukum, and a lot of 'partner ne kya kiya yaar'. In Mumbai and Gujarat most people call it Mendikot, and it has been played across India for generations.
This page covers the Mendikot rules exactly as Mandli plays them: the Band Hukum style, where the trump card sits face down until someone opens it. Plus scoring, tips and the variants people play at home.
Mandli is points only. No money, no betting, no coins.
Kya chahiye: Just phones. The app deals, keeps the hukum hidden, checks follow-suit and counts tens and tricks.
Rules: kaise khelte hain
Teams and dealing
Four players sit at the table, partners opposite each other. Mandli shuffles the seats at the start, so teams are random.
One 52-card deck is used and everyone gets 13 cards: first 5 each, then 8 more (4 and 4). Ace is high, 2 is low. The dealer moves one seat clockwise every hand.
Band Hukum: the hidden trump
The player right after the dealer is the Hukum wala. After seeing their first 5 cards, they place one face down on the table. That card's suit is the hukum (trump), but only the Hukum wala knows it. Everyone else sees 'Hukum band hai'.
The hidden card is not in their hand until the hukum is opened. The Hukum wala gets 15 seconds; on timeout Mandli hides the lowest card of their longest suit.
Playing a trick
The Hukum wala leads the first trick. Everyone must follow the suit that was led if they can. Whoever wins a trick leads the next one.
- If there is hukum in the trick, the highest hukum wins.
- If there is no hukum (or the hukum is still closed), the highest card of the led suit wins.
- Before the hukum is opened, no card counts as trump, even if it happens to be the hidden suit.
You get 20 seconds per card. If time runs out, Mandli plays your lowest legal card for you.
Hukum kholo: opening the trump
When it is your turn and you have none of the led suit, you have a choice:
- Tap 'Hukum kholo!'. The hidden card flips for everyone and goes back into the Hukum wala's hand. Its suit is hukum from this trick on, including cards already on the table in this trick. You must then play a hukum if you hold one.
- Or don't open, and throw any card you like.
The Hukum wala can also open it when they can't follow suit. If the hukum is still closed when the Hukum wala has nothing left in hand for the 13th trick, it opens by itself and they play it. A timeout never opens the hukum for you.
Capturing the dehlas
There are four tens, one per suit. The team that wins a trick with a ten in it captures that ten. Mandli shows a live count of tens and tricks for each team. A hand has exactly 13 tricks.
Who wins the hand
- The team with 3 or 4 tens wins the hand.
- If the tens are split 2 and 2, the team with 7 or more tricks wins the hand.
- All four tens is called Mendikot.
- All 13 tricks is called Bawan.
Since there are 13 tricks, a 2-2 split always has a winner.
The match
A match is 6 hands by default; the host can pick 4, 6 or 8. The team with the higher total gets the win banner. If a player leaves, a bot takes the seat and plays the lowest legal card, and a watcher can claim that seat from the next hand.
Points kaise milte hain
Each player on the winning team gets points for the hand: 10 for winning with 3 tens, or with 2 tens and 7+ tricks; 20 for a Mendikot (all four tens); 30 for a Bawan (all 13 tricks). Only the biggest line counts. The losing team gets 0 for that hand. The winning team gets the banner but no extra points, and your points carry into the room score across games.
Jeetne ke tips
- Count the tens. Once three are gone, you know exactly which team is chasing what.
- If your partner is winning a trick, throw your ten on it. If the opponents are winning it, hold your ten back.
- Opening the hukum is a big decision. If you have no hukum cards yourself, opening can hand the trick to the other side.
- As Hukum wala, hide a card from a suit you are long in, so the trump works for you later.
- Table talk is part of the game, but everyone hears it. Ghar ke rules, sab sun rahe hain.
Ghar wale rules aur variants
At many homes there is no hidden card. The first player who can't follow suit simply plays a card, and that card's suit becomes hukum for the rest of the hand. Mandli does not have this mode yet. It plays Band Hukum only.
Some families play Mendikot with more players and more than one deck. Mandli always plays the classic 4-player, 52-card game.
Dehla Pakad online kaise khelein
Create a room and share the link on WhatsApp, or show the QR code if you are sitting together. Friends without the app join from the browser link with just a name and a colour. Use Saath mode in the same room and talk out loud, or Door mode from different homes with the built-in voice chat (mic and speaker buttons, nothing recorded). The host picks 4, 6 or 8 hands. Extra people in the room watch the table but never see a hand, and after a match the losing pair goes to the back of the queue.
Sawaal jawaab
Is Dehla Pakad the same as Mendikot?
Yes. It is the same game with different names in different places. Dehla means ten, and the whole game is about capturing the four tens. Mandli plays the Band Hukum style of Mendikot rules.
What is Band Hukum in Mendikot?
Band Hukum means the trump is hidden. The player after the dealer places one card face down after seeing 5 cards, and its suit becomes trump only when someone who can't follow suit asks to open it.
What is Mendikot and what is Bawan?
Mendikot is when one team captures all four tens (20 points each). Bawan is when one team wins all 13 tricks (30 points each). Only the biggest one counts.
Can I play Dehla Pakad online with friends for free?
Yes. Mandli is free with no ads. Share a room link, and four friends can play from different cities with voice chat. It is points only, with no money involved.
What if a player drops out in the middle?
A bot takes the seat and plays the lowest legal card, so the hand can finish. If the internet drops for a moment, the seat is held for them.