Bhishi in Maharashtra: how a bhishi works, and how to keep the book
A bhishi (Marathi भिशी) is a rotating savings group common in Maharashtra and among Marathi families in other parts of India. A group of people, usually relatives, neighbours, colleagues or friends, pays the same amount on a set day each month, and each month one member takes the whole pot. The cycle continues until everyone has taken it once.
Nobody earns interest in a plain bhishi, and nobody pays any. The member who takes the pot early has money when they need it, and pays it back through later instalments. The member who takes it late has saved the whole time. Bhishis are used for weddings, school fees, a festival, a deposit on a flat, or a repair to the house.
In Marathi-speaking homes the group is also called a bhishi in everyday speech, and the person who keeps the money and the record is often called the bhishi malak (the owner of the bhishi) or simply the organizer.
How does a bhishi work?
- The organizer gathers members who know one another well, and agrees the monthly amount, the due date and the number of months. A group of ten members runs for ten months.
- The order of turns is set at the start, usually by drawing lots or by agreement. Some groups let members who need money early take early turns.
- Each month every member pays the organizer in cash, by bank transfer or by UPI.
- The organizer hands the full pot to that month’s member. When everyone has had a turn, the bhishi ends.
Some organizers ask for a small fee for running the group. If yours does, agree the amount and write it down before anyone pays.
How are turns decided?
Most bhishis draw lots at the first meeting. Others agree the order by need: a member facing a wedding or a hospital bill may ask for an early turn, and the group decides together. Whatever the method, the order should be agreed in front of everyone and written down. Arguments about who was meant to go first are the most common reason a bhishi falls apart.
Some bhishis allow a member to swap turns with someone who agrees. If two members swap, record it, so the book still shows who received what and when.
Bhishi, kitty party or chit fund?
A bhishi is an informal group among people who know each other. It is not a registered chit fund, which is a regulated business under the Chit Funds Act, 1982, and where turns are often decided by auction. You can read about the registered side in our chit fund guide.
A kitty party is usually a social gathering where women pay into a shared pot. It can work the same way as a bhishi, but many kitty parties are more about the company than the money. Be clear with members which one you are running, because the rules are different.
What goes wrong in a bhishi?
- A member stops paying after taking the pot. The biggest risk. The members who are still waiting carry the loss, and the organizer often covers the gap.
- Late payments. The member due to receive the pot waits, and the organizer has to chase the people who are behind.
- Records kept in a notebook or a chat. A notebook can be lost, and messages scroll away. Months later, nobody can prove who paid which month.
- Arguments about money held by the organizer. When the organizer is the only person who knows the balance, every question becomes a question of trust.
How do you keep a bhishi book with Savings Circle?
- Create the group. Choose “Committee” or “Savings circle” as the name type, or use your own name for the bhishi. Set the currency (Indian rupee is supported) and what each member pays per round.
- Add members from your contacts. They don’t need to install anything.
- Set the order. Run a random draw in front of everyone, or enter the order you agreed. A random draw saves its seed, so anyone can check later that it was not changed.
- Record payments as they come in, by cash, bank or UPI, with a screenshot as proof if you like. It works offline and syncs when you are back online.
- Remind the late ones. One tap opens WhatsApp, SMS or Telegram with a polite message ready to send.
- Record each payout. Every entry is dated. A correction is added as a new entry, and the original stays in the history.
Savings Circle is a record book. It does not hold money, run auctions or make payments. Members pay the organizer the way they already do; the app keeps the shared record of who paid, who is next and what is owed.
Other names for the same idea
Across India the same kind of group is a kameti or committee, a kuri, a vishi or bishi in other states, and a kitty party in cities. Around the world it is a tanda in Mexico, a susu in Ghana, a chama in Kenya, an arisan in Indonesia and a paluwagan in the Philippines. Economists call all of these rotating savings and credit associations, or ROSCAs.
Guides
- South Asia: committee, kameti, chit fund, bhishi, kitty party and samity
- Africa: susu, chama, ajo, adashe, equb, hagbad, stokvel, tontine, mukando and chilimba
- The Americas and the Caribbean: sou-sou, tanda, junta, lending circle and pardner
- Asia and the Pacific: arisan, paluwagan and hụi
- The Arab world: jam’iya