How to play Chhutta

Chhutta is a daily money game. You run a shop counter, customers pay with big notes, and you hand back exact change in Indian rupee notes and coins, as fast as you can.

The rules

  1. Read the bill. A customer buys something and pays with a note, for example ₹200 for a ₹137 item.
  2. Work out the change. ₹200 − ₹137 = ₹63.
  3. Hand it back. Tap notes and coins in the cash drawer to put them in the tray: ₹50 + ₹10 + ₹2 + ₹1. Tap something in the tray to take it back.
  4. Next customer. As soon as the tray matches the change, the next customer steps up. Serve all 10.

For ₹63, the fastest change is ₹50₹10₹2₹1.

Scoring

Your score is the time it takes to serve all 10 customers. Every note or coin beyond the fewest possible adds 2 seconds. Giving ₹63 as ₹20₹20₹20₹2₹1 is correct, but it's one piece more than ₹50₹10₹2₹1, so it costs 2 seconds.

The results row shows 🟩 for a customer served with the fewest pieces and 🟨 when you used extra.

The cash drawer

Notes: ₹500, ₹200, ₹100, ₹50, ₹20 and ₹10, in the colours of the current Mahatma Gandhi New Series. Coins: ₹5, ₹2 and ₹1. Customers pay with ₹50, ₹100, ₹200 or ₹500 notes, and the odd one hands you two ₹500s for something big.

₹500₹200₹100₹50₹20₹10₹5₹2₹1

Daily shift and practice

The daily shift is the same 10 customers for everyone on the same date, easiest first, so you can compare times with friends. It changes at midnight your time.

Practice gives random customers and shows the change due on screen, so you only have to pick the notes. It's the place to learn, and it doesn't touch your daily score. See the money game for kids guide for ways to use it with children.

Questions

What does chhutta mean?

It's the everyday Hindi word for loose change, as in "chhutta nahi hai" when you hand a shopkeeper a big note.

Is the daily shift the same for everyone?

Yes. Everyone gets the same 10 customers on the same date.

Why is there no ₹2000 note?

The RBI withdrew the ₹2000 note from circulation in 2023, so it isn't in the drawer.

Open today's Chhutta shop10 customers, real rupee notes, one score: your time. Free, no sign-up.

More Chhutta guides