trick-taking · West India (Gujarat & Maharashtra)

Mendikot

Also known as Mendicot · Mindikot · Dehla Pakad · Dehla Pakad · Dehla · Collect the Tens · Catch the Tens · Tens Capture · દહલા પકડ

Mendikot (also spelled Mendicot or Mindikot, and known as Dehla Pakad in North India) is a beloved four-player partnership trick-taking card game from western India, especially Gujarat and Maharashtra. Two teams of two sit across from each other and battle to capture the four tens hidden in the deck, with the team grabbing three or more tens winning the hand. Play Mendikot online free against smart bots or friends, learn the full rules below, and chase the ultimate prize: a mendikot, where you sweep all four tens in a single deal.

Coming soon — learn the rules below

4–4 players · free to play online

How to play Mendikot

Form two teams of two players, with partners sitting directly across from each other.
Shuffle a standard 52-card deck and deal 13 cards to each of the four players.
Choose the trump (hukum) using your agreed method: open card, closed band card, or cut hukum (trump revealed when someone first can't follow suit).
The player to the dealer's right leads; everyone must follow the led suit if able, otherwise play any card or trump.
Win each trick with the highest trump, or the highest card of the led suit if no trump is played, and capture any tens inside.
After 13 tricks, your team wins the hand by capturing 3 or 4 tens — or, if tens split 2-2, by taking 7 or more tricks.
Sweep all four tens for a mendikot, or all 13 tricks for a whitewash, then deal the next hand based on who won.

Mendikot rules

Objective

Mendikot is a point-trick game with one simple goal: capture the four tens (the 10 of each suit). The four players form two partnerships, with partners seated opposite each other. A team wins a hand by capturing three or four of the tens. If each team captures two tens, the hand is decided by tricks instead: whoever won seven or more of the thirteen tricks wins. Capturing all four tens is called a mendikot; capturing all thirteen tricks is a whitewash (also called a 52-card mendikot), the most crushing result in the game.

The deck and the deal

Mendikot uses a standard 52-card pack with no jokers. In each suit the cards rank from high to low: A, K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 — so the ten is a mid-ranking card, easy to capture and the whole point of the game. The first dealer is chosen by drawing cards from a shuffled pack. The dealer shuffles, the player to the dealer's left cuts, and 13 cards are dealt to each player, usually in batches (commonly five then four then four). Deal and play move anticlockwise.

Choosing the trump (hukum)

The trump suit is called the hukum. Players agree on a trump method before the session begins. Three common methods: (1) Open / first-card trump — before play, the player to the dealer's right exposes a card and its suit becomes trump. (2) Band hukum (closed trump) — that player secretly places one card face down; its suit is the trump, revealed only later when a player runs out of a suit and wants to use it. (3) Cut hukum (unseen trump) — play begins with no trump at all, and the very first time any player cannot follow suit, the suit of the card they choose to play instantly becomes trump for that deal.

How to play a trick

The player to the dealer's right leads the first trick (in the open-trump version) by playing any card; in cut hukum, play simply starts. Going anticlockwise, each player must follow the suit that was led 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. Whoever wins the trick collects its four cards (which may contain tens) and leads the next trick. Thirteen tricks are played until all hands are empty.

Scoring and winning the hand

After all 13 tricks, count the tens each team has captured. Three or four tens wins the hand outright. If the tens split 2-2, the team with seven or more tricks wins. Winning all four tens is a mendikot, and sweeping all thirteen tricks is a whitewash / 52-card mendikot — both are prized results often tracked as bonus games. Hands are played in a series; many groups play first-to-a-target (for example, first team to win 7 or 12 hands), and online versions track team scores and mendikot streaks automatically.

Dealer rotation

The deal does not simply pass around the table — it follows the result. If the dealer's team wins the hand, the turn to deal passes to the next player to the dealer's right. If the dealer's team loses, the same player generally deals again. After a whitewash (all 13 tricks lost), the deal passes to the loser's partner. This 'winner makes the loser deal' rotation is a signature feel of the game and adds friendly pressure to keep your team winning.

Variants

Dehla Pakad is the popular North Indian version: it plays almost identically, but captured cards are only gathered in when the same player wins two tricks in a row — otherwise tricks pile up face down in the middle, adding tension. Some circles play six or eight players in two big teams by removing the four twos so cards deal evenly. House rules vary on the trump method (open, closed band, or cut hukum) and on whether tens are tracked as running 'kots' across many hands.

Strategy tips

Track the tens above all else — a low ten is vulnerable, so lead high cards or trumps to force out and snatch opposing tens before they are protected.
Remember which suits your partner and opponents have shown out of; once someone is void, their trumps become a threat to every ten you try to win.
Save your trumps to capture tens, not random small cards — wasting a trump on a worthless trick can cost you a ten later in the hand.
Signal and trust your partner: leading a suit your partner is strong in lets them win the trick and protect tens on their side of the table.
In cut hukum, think before breaking a suit, because the card you choose sets the trump for the whole deal — pick a suit where your team is strong.

Variants

Dehla Pakad (North Indian version where tricks are only gathered when a player wins two in a row) · Open trump (first-card hukum) variant · Band hukum / closed trump variant · Cut hukum (unseen trump revealed mid-play) variant · Six- or eight-player Mendikot with the four twos removed for even deals · Running 'kots' scoring tracked across many hands

Mendikot — frequently asked questions

How do you play Mendikot?

Four players split into two partnerships sitting opposite each other. Deal all 52 cards (13 each), pick a trump suit (hukum), then play 13 tricks following suit when you can. The goal is to capture the four tens — a team wins the hand by taking three or four tens, or by winning seven-plus tricks if the tens split evenly.

What is a mendikot?

A mendikot is when one team captures all four tens (the 10 of every suit) in a single hand. It is the namesake achievement of the game and the most satisfying normal win. Capturing all thirteen tricks goes one better and is called a whitewash or 52-card mendikot.

What is the difference between Mendikot and Dehla Pakad?

They are nearly the same game — Mendikot is the western Indian (Gujarat/Maharashtra) name and Dehla Pakad is the northern Indian name. The main difference: in Dehla Pakad, captured tricks are only collected when the same player wins two tricks in a row, otherwise cards stack face down in the center.

How is the trump (hukum) decided in Mendikot?

Players agree on a method beforehand. Common ones are: open trump (the player right of the dealer exposes a card whose suit is trump), band hukum (they place a card face down as a hidden trump), or cut hukum (no trump until someone first can't follow suit, and the suit they then play becomes trump).

What happens if both teams get two tens each?

When the four tens split two-and-two, the hand is decided by tricks. The team that won seven or more of the thirteen tricks wins the hand. This makes the back half of every deal matter even after the tens have been settled.

Can I play Mendikot online for free?

Yes. You can play Mendikot online free in your browser with no real-money stakes — practice against smart bots or join friends in a four-player 2v2 table. It is a purely social card game, perfect for learning the rules and chasing your first mendikot.