Gulam Chor Rules (Old Maid)

Gulam Chor is an Indian name for Old Maid, a simple pairing game for three or more players. The player left holding the single unpaired Jack at the end is the chor (thief).

🙈 Play it now: open Gulam Chor with 3 to 6 players.

Players and cards

• 3 or more players, one 52-card pack.
• Before dealing, one Jack is removed face down and kept aside. Nobody looks at it.
• The other 51 cards are all dealt. Some players may have one card more than others.

Throwing pairs

Everyone looks at their cards and throws away every pair of the same rank, face up: two 9s, two Kings and so on. Colour and suit don't matter. Three of a kind means one pair goes and one card stays.

Drawing

• The first player fans their cards face down towards the next player, who draws one without seeing it.
• If the drawn card pairs with one in hand, both are thrown away. If not, it stays in hand.
• Then that player offers their own cards to the next, and so on round the table (anticlockwise on Cheettukali).
• Players may shuffle their own hand before offering it.

Getting safe and the chor

A player whose hand becomes empty is safe and out of the game. Play continues, skipping safe players, until every pair is gone. One card is left: the Jack whose partner was removed. Its holder is the Gulam Chor.

Example: Priya holds J♠ and 4♦. You draw from her and get the 4♦, which pairs with your 4♣. Both 4s are thrown away. Priya now has only the J♠. If nobody takes it from her before everyone else pairs up, Priya is the chor.

Variations

• Old Maid removes a Queen instead of a Jack.
• Some families remove a different card, or add a Joker as the odd card.
• Some play that pairs must be the same colour (two red 7s, two black 7s).

FAQ