Ludo is the board every Indian family owns. Four gotis each, one paasa, and a lot of "arre, kaat diya!" shouted across the room.
Below are the full rules as Mandli plays them, plus the house rules you may know from home. If you want to play Ludo online with friends and voice chat right now, Mandli runs the board on everyone's phone and keeps a voice call open inside the game, so you can hear the other person groan when you cut their goti.
No login, no ads, no coins. Just a name, a colour and a room link on WhatsApp.
Kya chahiye: Just phones. The app rolls the paasa, shows which gotis can move and counts everything.
Rules: kaise khelte hain
The board and your gotis
Each player has 4 gotis in their ghar (base) in one corner. The colours in Mandli are Pink, Mehendi, Haldi and Neel. With two players you sit opposite each other.
The track has 52 squares around the board. After a full lap each goti turns up its own coloured home column of 5 squares and reaches the centre.
A six to open
On your turn the paasa is rolled for you when you tap "Paasa phenko". A goti can only leave the ghar on a 6. It comes out onto your start square.
If you have more than one goti that can move, you pick which one. If only one move is possible, it happens by itself.
Kaatna: cutting a goti
Land exactly on an opponent's goti on a normal square and it goes back to their ghar. They need a fresh 6 to bring it out again.
If two or more opponent gotis sit on that square, all of them go back. You can share a square with your own gotis.
Safe squares
Mandli has 8 safe squares: the 4 start squares and the 4 star squares. Nobody can be cut on a safe square. If you land on an opponent there, both gotis simply stay.
Extra turns and three sixes
- A 6 gives you another roll.
- Cutting a goti gives you another roll.
- Getting a goti home gives you another roll.
But if you roll three 6s in a row, the third 6 is dropped and your turn passes. The moves you already made with the first two 6s stay.
Reaching home
A goti needs the exact number to reach the centre. If your roll is too big for every goti, and nothing else can move, the roll is shown for a moment and the turn passes.
Classic, Jaldi and 2v2
- Classic: first player to bring all 4 gotis home wins.
- Jaldi (quick): the first goti home wins the round. Good for a short break.
- 2v2 jodi (4 players only): partners sit opposite. You can't cut your partner. Once your own 4 gotis are home, your rolls move your partner's gotis. In classic the team wins with all 8 gotis home, in Jaldi with 2 gotis home between you.
- Sab khelo (host option): the game keeps going until 1st, 2nd and 3rd places are decided.
Points kaise milte hain
The winner gets 20 points. With Sab khelo on, 2nd place gets 10 (with 3 or 4 players) and 3rd gets 5 (with 4 players). In 2v2, each partner on the winning team gets 15. Every cut is worth 2 points, up to 10 per round, and you keep those even if you lose. Points are only for fun and they carry across games in the same room. There is no money, no betting and no coins anywhere in Mandli.
Jeetne ke tips
- Don't park a goti one to six squares in front of an opponent on a normal square. That is exactly where it gets cut.
- Use safe squares as resting spots when an opponent is close behind you.
- Getting a second goti out early gives you choices later. One goti alone is easy to chase.
- In 2v2, talk to your partner on voice. Decide who blocks and who runs before you roll.
- Near the end, spread your gotis out so that more rolls are useful to you.
Ghar wale rules aur variants
In many homes a goti can't enter its home column until you have cut at least one opponent. Mandli does not use this rule: you can go home without a cut.
Some families say two gotis of the same colour on one square make a wall nobody can pass. Mandli has this as the host option "Jodi rok". It is off by default.
Ludo online kaise khelein
Make a room in Mandli, share the link on WhatsApp or show the QR code, and pick Ludo. Friends without the app join from the browser link. Up to 4 sit at the board and everyone else in the room watches, taps reactions and joins the voice chat. After each game the winner stays and the next people in the queue take the free seats. The host can pick Classic or Jaldi, switch on 2v2 jodi, Sab khelo and Jodi rok. In Saath mode you are in the same room and just talk out loud; in Door mode everyone is far away and the built-in voice chat does the shouting for you. Each turn has a 10 second timer, and a dropped player's seat is held for 60 seconds.
Sawaal jawaab
How can I play Ludo online with friends with voice chat?
Open Mandli, make a room, pick Ludo and share the link on WhatsApp. The voice chat is built into the game, with mic and speaker buttons. It is free, with no ads.
Which squares are safe in Ludo?
In Mandli the 4 start squares (where each colour comes out) and the 4 star squares are safe. A goti on a safe square can't be cut.
Do you need a 6 to open a goti in Ludo?
Yes. In Mandli a goti leaves the ghar only on a 6, and the 6 also gives you another roll.
What happens if you roll three sixes in Ludo?
The third 6 is cancelled and your turn passes. Moves you made with the first two 6s stay on the board.
Can 4 people play Ludo in teams?
Yes. Switch on 2v2 jodi in the lobby with exactly 4 players. Partners sit opposite, can't cut each other, and once your gotis are home you help move your partner's.