अंदर बाहर

Andar Bahar rules◈

One card in the centre, two sides, and a deal that stops the instant the rank repeats.

How a round runs

1. The dealer shuffles a single 52-card deck.
2. One card is drawn and placed face up in the centre. This is the joker or house card — nothing to do with a joker card from the deck, it is simply the rank everyone is now watching for.
3. Players choose Andar or Bahar.
4. Cards are dealt alternately, one to each side. Which side receives the first card is set by the colour of the centre card — black deals first to Andar, red deals first to Bahar.
5. The moment a card of the same rank as the centre card appears, the round ends and that side wins.

How to play Andar Bahar, step by step

1. Turn up the centre card from a shuffled 52-card deck.
2. Pick a side — Andar or Bahar.
3. Deal alternately to the two piles, starting with the side set by the centre card's colour.
4. Stop on the match. The first pile to receive a card of the same rank as the centre card wins.

The point is the entire game. Step two is the only decision anyone makes.

The Andar Bahar game in one paragraph

The Andar Bahar game is a single-comparison card game: one card is turned up in the centre, cards are dealt alternately to two piles, and the first pile to receive a matching rank wins. It is known as Katti in Karnataka and as Mangatha in parts of Tamil Nadu.

Where the edge sits

The side that receives the first card is slightly more likely to hit the match, simply because it gets one extra opportunity. That side is not fixed — it is decided by the colour of the centre card.

Because both colours are equally likely, neither Andar nor Bahar is favoured overall — the advantage simply moves between them from round to round. In casino versions the payouts reflect this, with the first-dealt side paying slightly less than even money.

Some home games ignore the colour rule and always deal to one side first. Agree which version you are playing before the first deal, because it is the only rule here that affects the odds at all.

Published sources disagree on which side goes first

Every source agrees the centre card's colour decides. Where they split is which colour sends the first card to which side — and because the side dealt to first has a small edge, this one actually changes the odds.

We checked six published sources. Four give the rule as black to Andar and red to Bahar. Two reverse it. One further set of regional versions sends the first card to Andar every time, regardless of colour.

The version documented here is the one Pagat records. The third row is the one to watch: if a table deals to Andar first regardless of colour, the game is no longer symmetrical and Andar carries a standing advantage. Ask which version is being played.

More disputes of this kind are collected on rules that are actually disputed.

Regional names

The same game is played across southern and western India under different names. The rules do not change.

How long a round takes

The round ends on the first matching rank. There are three other cards of that rank in the remaining fifty-one, so on average a match turns up after roughly twenty-five cards — but it can land on the very first card, and occasionally it runs most of the deck. This is why Andar Bahar plays much faster than Teen Patti or Rummy, and why it suits short sessions.

Common questions