Being fighting people who had to be away from their properties for long periods, the Bunts, evolved the `aliya santhana` (family line of the nephew) system by which all the property was vested in the female members who managed the farms while the title remained with the males. The entire family property remained undivided and intact as it devolved upon the sister`s son of the deceased holder. A `family` consists of a mother and her offspring and the father is an `outsider`, an ideal co-operative venture. Unlike many other communities the birth of a girl is welcomed since she perpetuates the family line.

Till recently there were instances of over a hundred persons of such a family living under one roof with a common kitchen. Agriculture was practised on a co-operative basis under the `yajaman` (head) of a `guttu` or `beedu` (Bunt memorial house).

Intermarriage between people belonging to various guttus and beedus was prohibited but this restriction is dying out gradually. The Bunts love manly and outdoor sports. Buffalo racing and cock-fights (koridatta) are two popular recreations for them.

The folk dance drama of the district, the Yakshagana, has been promoted and nourished mainly under the guidance of the Bunts. It is a form of dance that has received nationwide acclaim. Some Bunt houses have their own troupes and many Bunts have made notable contributions to this form of the dance.

A marriage solemnized under the `aliya santhana` system is not a marriage in the strict sense of the term and based more on custom than on the Aliaya Santhana Act. Divorce is granted after six months of the application. Under the Act there is no system of alimony or maintenance. Nevertheless, despite this liberal provision there has been hardly any instance of separation worth mentioning.

As the girl given in marriage was the chief inheritor of property and got valuable jewellery from her mother, the dowry system was unheard of till some 50 years ago. Nowadays, it has become a common practice in this community as well. Only a few families have set an example by not giving or taking dowry and a few have gone a step further by giving their girls in marriage to Vokkaligas, who are regarded as being closest to the Bunts. The marriage ceremony today is a simple and inexpensive one though in the past it was a long drawn out affair.

The British made the Bunts village headman. On account of a peculiar Ryotwari tenancy system hundreds of Bunts found themselves in distress as they could neither get the rent nor evict the tenant.

Despite land reforms and economic stress, the Bunts even now own most of the cultivable land and command the traditional leadership and respect of the villages. Bunts still have a majority representation in most panchayats, taluk boards and even in the State Legislature. Successive ministers representing the district have been Bunts. Political power naturally belonged to them because they always shared the joys and sorrows of the people, particularly the tenants.

This community prefers non-vegetarian cuisine but head of some families, such as, the Ballals and Kurla Hegdes, abstain from eating flesh and imbibing intoxicating drinks. These groups wear the sacred thread.