Though very few individuals claim to be sakhī, it is not uncommon, either in places of pilgrimage or in ascetic milieu when a celebration takes place (bhaṇḍārā), to witness a man dressed as a woman, expressing his feminine identity and dancing in praise of the divine. This paper intends to address this contemporary sakhī identity and its various religious and social declensions. This paper relies on fieldwork conducted in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh (2023, 2024 and 2025) in order to observe and discuss with sakhī; it became clear that these individuals see themselves as very different from hijra - usually described as "third gender people" in India, and earning their livelihood through benediction (āśīrvād) and prostitution. The main objective of this paper is therefore to draw the inherent characteristics of this sakhī community. We will of course discuss the emotional state necessary to maintain, permanently, this female identity, but most of our presentation will rely on our analysis of the social structure inherent to the community: the guru-disciple relationship, support between members, community and personal lifestyle and livelihood. This will enable us to relate religion (modern Hindu bhakti/devotion) to contemporary gender identities and to present sakhī identity as a third devotional gender.