Decoding Paplu, Nichlu & Tiplu in Indian Rummy

In card terminology, Paplu, Nichlu, and Tiplu are used in the game of Marriage Rummy, Rummy, or simple Marriage which is a very popular version in India, Nepal, and Bhutan.

However, for most of us, these terms can be quite confusing. Therefore, we thought of decoding the terminology to give you a basic understanding of what Paplu, Nichlu, and Tiplu stand for.

To put it simply, once all the 21 cards have been dealt to each player, one card is pulled from the deck and named Tiplu. Nichlu is referred to as the card of the same suit which is lower to Tiplu, and Paplu is the card of the same suit which is higher in value than Tiplu.

Here is an illustration to make things clearer.

For example, if the Tiplu is the J then:

• The other two J are Tiplu
• The three Q are Paplu
• The three 10 are Nichlu
• There are 12 jokers: all the J, J, and J.

All three of them, i.e., Paplu, Nichlu, and Tiplu are referred to as point cards with a particular point assigned to them. Point cards are also sometimes referred to as Maal.

• Each Tiplu carries 3 points each, each Nichlu carries 2 points each and each Paplu also carries 3 points each.
• Marriage results in 10 points getting rewarded

So there you go! now that you have a basic understanding of these terms, we will be back with more to delve a bit deeper next time!