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Devchar, also called Zagevoilo or Bandevoilo, is a spirit of the Konkan coast. He is variously described as a guardian deity, a devil, a mischievous spirit, the ghost of a man who died soon after marriage, or as a forest-dweller who lures people to follow him.

Those who do follow Devchar into the woods are sometimes found dead, other times alive; if they survive, they are likely to be discovered far from home, unable to explain how they got there.

The Catholic Church of Goa translated the Portuguese Diablo (“Devil”) into Konkani as Devchar, so the spirit has often been equated with Christian devils, or with Satan himself. However, many Hindus, and those with syncretic beliefs, reject this. Instead, they revere Devchar as a protector who resides at the four corners of a village boundary. This Devchar is propitiated with offerings of feni (the local Goan liquor, made from coconut or cashew). He also likes toddy, leavened bread, and country cigarettes. These offerings are sometimes left quietly behind Christian crosses, such as those placed at the sites of road accidents.

Devchar is also associated with Rakhondar, another guardian deity of Konkan villages; with Betal, the king of ghosts (see under Vetal); and with the demon-god Maru.

In the Spring, during Shigmo (a Goan holiday coinciding with Holi), Betal temples hold a festival called Gadyachi Zatra. During this festival, in the middle of the night, Devchar is said to appear as a faceless, shadowy form. He delights the crowds by holding flames in his palms and walking in the air. Cameras are strictly forbidden at the festival, and there are several modern legends about would-be photographers falling unconscious or deathly ill.

Male devotees, called gade, play hide-and-seek with Devchar on the nights of Shigmo. They roam through the forest following his torch, or else go searching for other gade whom the spirit has captured and hidden. On the last night of the festival, the gade visit cremation grounds and cemeteries, gather up bits of corpses, bring them back and dance with them for some time, before finally returning them to the graveyard.

There are stories of gade disappearing during this festival, or being so well hidden by the Devchar that they are only found the following year.

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According to a belief current among the Kumbri Marathi tribe of Karnataka, the Devchar are usually kindly spirits. However, if taboos pertaining to purity and cleanliness are not followed, they can cause great affliction. In the Kumbri Marathi pantheon of demons, the term Devchar is also applied to certain types of Balishtamaru, in particular the Rav, Devati, and Akashmurchi.