Narasimhavarman I — known by the epithet Mamalla, "the great wrestler" — extended Pallava power aggressively during his reign, most notably sacking the Chalukya capital of Vatapi around 642 AD and killing the Chalukya king Pulakesi II, a rival who had previously humiliated his father Mahendravarman I. The Pallava coinage of this period is poorly documented in Western numismatic literature, and potin issues of this type circulated across a Tamil trading economy that operated largely outside coin-dependent exchange.
Narasimhavarman I — known by the epithet Mamalla, "the great wrestler" — extended Pallava power aggressively during his reign, most notably sacking the Chalukya capital of Vatapi around 642 AD and killing the Chalukya king Pulakesi II, a rival who had previously humiliated his father Mahendravarman I. The Pallava coinage of this period is poorly documented in Western numismatic literature, and potin issues of this type circulated across a Tamil trading economy that operated largely outside coin-dependent exchange.