Bayly has examined why it was that some among the low-ranking Paravars were able to rise to work in occupations that were both more prestigious and more financially rewarding than had been the case before the conversion to Christianity, She points out that the Paravars held much the same rank as the Mukkavars, who were also a maritime caste of the area and were converted but did not demonstrate the same subsequent socio-economic mobility. (It has, however, been argued that the Mukkavars were "a sub-class of the Parava community" and formed the largest group of those converted to Christianity during Xavier's time). Robinson has said