Three religious mendicant couples

The pictures made by Indian artists for the British in India are called Company paintings. This one comes from a volume containing 30 folios depicting castes, occupations, methods of cultivation and processional scenes. It shows three religious mendicant (begging) couples. The couple on the left are non-Brahmin Vaishnavites. They are followers of the philosopher Ramanuja, who revitalised Vaishnavism in the 11th century and whose image appears on the man's flag. The identifying inscription is in Telugu. The couple in the middle belong to a non-Brahmin priest caste, and the inscription below is in Tamil. The third couple are non-Brahmin mendicants (beggars). The man is blowing a conch shell and holding a begging bowl. The woman is carrying a skin bag and holding a peacock-feather fan (morchhal). There is a lamp on a stand between them. The inscription is in Telugu.