The aadhiya system, also sometimes spelled as adhiya, is a system, most prevalent in north-eastern, northern Bengali speaking parts of India (as the word is Bengali), where a sex worker is rented a room or apartment by a mashi or brothel keeper, usually an older retired sex worker, who charges the worker rent for the room based on her total earnings rather than at a fixed rate, so that the mashi gets a share of the worker's earnings. See also Dance bar Pornography in India Prostitution in India Prostitution in Pakistan Prostitution in colonial India Prostitution in Asia Prostitution by country Further reading References Prostitution in India Indian words and phrases Sex workers