trick-taking · North India

Dehla Pakad

Also known as Dehla Pakad · Dehlo Pakad · Dehla · Collect the Tens · Pakad · Dehla Pakar

Dehla Pakad (Hindi for "catch the tens," also spelled Dehlo Pakad or simply Dehla) is a four-player partnership trick-taking card game from North India where the whole battle is over the four tens. Play Dehla Pakad online free in 2-vs-2 teams, set the trump suit on the fly, and master the game's signature twist: you only sweep the cards from the table when you win two tricks in a row. Whether you grew up playing it at family gatherings or you're searching for how to play Dehla Pakad, this guide covers the rules, trump selection, the consecutive-trick capture mechanic, and Kot scoring.

Coming soon — learn the rules below

4–4 players · free to play online

How to play Dehla Pakad

Sit in two teams of two, with your partner directly across the table from you.
Get your first 5 cards from the dealer and decide the trump — either reveal it when the first player can't follow suit, or have the player to the dealer's right call it.
Take your remaining cards so everyone holds 13, then start playing tricks anticlockwise, always following the led suit when you can.
Win a trick with the highest trump, or the highest card of the led suit if no trump was played — but leave the cards face down in the centre.
Win two tricks in a row to sweep the entire centre pile, including every ten that has piled up — alternating wins with your partner does not collect.
Hunt the four tens: capture three or all four to win the hand, and grab all four for a Kot (Coat).
Keep playing hands until your team reaches the agreed number of Kots or leads when time is up.

Dehla Pakad rules

Objective

Dehla Pakad is played by four players in two fixed partnerships, with partners sitting opposite each other across the table. The whole game revolves around the four tens (the dehlas), one in each suit. Your team's goal each hand is to capture more tens than the opponents by winning them in tricks. Take three or four of the tens and you win the hand. Sweep all four tens and your side scores a Kot (also spelled Coat), the game's big bonus. The aim of a session is to win the most hands, or to win an agreed number of Kots.

The deck and the deal

Use a standard 52-card pack. In each suit the cards rank high to low: A, K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 — so the ten is an ordinary mid-ranking card, valuable only because it is the scoring card. The defining feature of Dehla Pakad's deal (and what separates it from its cousin Mendikot) is that cards come in two stages. The dealer first gives every player just 5 cards. The trump suit is then decided (see below). Only after that does the dealer hand out the remaining cards in batches of four, so each player ends up with 13 cards.

Choosing the trump suit

Players agree on one of two methods at the start of the session. Method 1 (the classic "hidden" trump): play begins immediately with only the first 5 cards and no trump. Players follow the led suit until someone cannot follow — the very suit that player chooses to play instead becomes trump for the whole hand. This makes the early tricks tense, because you never know who will set trumps. Method 2 ("called" trump): after the 5-card deal, the player to the dealer's right simply looks at their hand and announces the trump suit, then leads. Either way, once the trump is fixed the dealer completes the deal to 13 cards each and play continues.

How to play a trick

Play and dealing go anticlockwise. The player to the dealer's right leads the first trick by playing any card; everyone in turn must follow the led suit if they can. A player who cannot follow suit may play any card, including a trump. The trick is won by the highest trump played, or if no trump was played, by the highest card of the suit that was led. The winner of a trick leads the next one. Tens have no special power in a trick — an ace or king beats a ten of the same suit — they simply matter because capturing them wins the game.

The two-consecutive-tricks capture rule

This is the rule that makes Dehla Pakad unique, so learn it well. When you win a trick you do NOT immediately collect the cards. Instead the cards are turned face down and left in the centre of the table. You only gather the whole pile in front of your team when the SAME player wins two tricks in a row. If your partner wins the next trick instead of you, the pile stays in the middle and keeps growing — a partnership cannot collect by alternating wins, the two consecutive wins must come from one player. Any tens sitting in that uncollected pile are still up for grabs until someone finally wins two in a row and scoops everything, including all the tens that accumulated. The very last trick of the hand is always collected by whoever wins it, regardless of the streak.

Scoring, Kots and winning

At the end of the hand, count the tens each side actually collected. The team holding the majority of the four tens (three or four) wins the hand. If the tens split two and two, it is a draw on tens — most house rules then award the hand to the side that won the most tricks, or simply replay. Capturing all four tens is a Kot (Coat), the premium result. A Kot can also be scored by winning seven hands in a row. Sessions are usually played to an agreed number of Kots, or for a set time with the team ahead on hands or Kots declared the winner. The dealer for the next hand normally rotates to the right, with house rules sometimes letting a winning dealer keep the deal.

Variants and related games

Dehla Pakad is the North-Indian relative of Mendikot, played in Maharashtra and Gujarat, where all 13 cards are dealt at once and tricks are collected normally (Mendikot has no two-consecutive-tricks rule). It also shares family roots with Court Piece (Rang) and Mindi. Common variants include: the hidden vs. called trump methods above; a "52-card sweep" or whitewash bonus for winning every single trick; playing first-to-a-Kot-count rather than by time; and regional scoring tweaks for the 2-2 tie on tens. Some tables also vary whether a dealer who wins keeps the deal.

Strategy tips

The tens are everything else is just a vehicle. Hold high trumps and aces to win the trick that finally lets you sweep a pile loaded with tens.
Plan your two-in-a-row. Because cards only collect when one player wins two consecutive tricks, time your strong cards so you win back-to-back rather than splitting wins with your partner.
Watch the centre pile. If several tricks (and tens) are sitting uncollected, the next two-in-a-row is hugely valuable — fight hard for it or deny it to the opponents.
Remember who set the trump. In the hidden-trump method, the player who broke suit revealed both the trump and that they were void — use that to read the table.
Save a ten you can't protect by dumping it on a trick your team is already winning, and try to throw opponents' tens onto piles you are about to sweep.
Signal through your discards: when you can't follow suit, the card you choose tells your partner which suits you are strong or weak in.

Variants

Hidden trump: trump is revealed when the first player cannot follow suit · Called trump: the player to the dealer's right announces trump after seeing 5 cards · 52-card sweep / whitewash: bonus for winning every trick in a hand · Seven-hands-in-a-row Kot: win seven consecutive hands to score a Kot · Kot-count session: first team to an agreed number of Kots wins · 2-2 tie rule: hand decided by most tricks (or replayed) when tens split evenly · Mendikot (West India): all 13 cards dealt at once, tricks collected normally

Dehla Pakad — frequently asked questions

How do you play Dehla Pakad?

Four players form two teams of two sitting opposite their partner. Each player first gets 5 cards, the trump suit is decided, then everyone is dealt up to 13 cards. You play tricks by following suit; the highest trump (or highest card of the led suit) wins. Cards stay face down in the centre and you only collect them by winning two tricks in a row. The goal is to capture the four tens — take three or four to win the hand.

What does Dehla Pakad mean?

Dehla Pakad is Hindi for "catch the tens" or "collect the tens." A dehla is a ten, and pakad means to catch or hold. The name describes the whole point of the game: capturing the four tens in tricks.

What is the two consecutive tricks rule in Dehla Pakad?

When you win a trick the cards are not collected right away — they are turned face down and left in the middle. You only sweep that pile (and all the tens in it) when the same player wins two tricks in a row. If your partner wins the next trick instead of you, nothing collects and the pile keeps growing. This consecutive-win rule is what makes Dehla Pakad different from Mendikot.

How is the trump suit decided in Dehla Pakad?

There are two agreed methods. In the hidden-trump method, play starts with just 5 cards and no trump; the moment a player can't follow the led suit, the suit they play instead becomes trump for the hand. In the called-trump method, the player to the dealer's right looks at their first 5 cards and announces the trump. After trump is set, the rest of the cards are dealt.

What is a Kot (Coat) in Dehla Pakad?

A Kot, also spelled Coat, is the top result: it is scored by capturing all four tens in a single hand, or by winning seven hands in a row. Sessions are often played to an agreed number of Kots. Winning the majority of tens (three) wins the hand but is not a full Kot.

What is the difference between Dehla Pakad and Mendikot?

Both are Indian partnership games about capturing the tens, but Dehla Pakad is from North India and Mendikot from Maharashtra and Gujarat. In Mendikot all 13 cards are dealt at once and tricks are collected normally. In Dehla Pakad cards are dealt in two stages (5 then 8) and, crucially, you only collect tricks from the centre by winning two consecutive tricks.

Can I play Dehla Pakad online for free?

Yes. You can play Dehla Pakad online free in 2-vs-2 multiplayer, teaming up with a partner against two opponents. It is purely social and for fun, with no real-money play — just the classic catch-the-tens gameplay with the two-consecutive-tricks capture rule.