The venue of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with China’s President Xi Jinping over Friday and Saturday has been referred to, interchangeably, Mamallapuram and Mahabalipuram. The Ministry of External Affairs’ media advisory mentions ‘Mahabalipuram’, and officials have been using that name in informal communication. BIRTH OF ‘MAHABALIPURAM’S Swaminathan, author of Mamallapuram, a book on the architectural and sculptural achievements of the Pallavas, said Mamallapuram was the original name, even though the town is also called Mahabalipuram. But there is nothing to directly connect the Asura King Mahabali with Mamallapuram,” he said. The successors of Narasimhavarman I, especially his grandson Parameswaravarman I (670-695 AD) and his great grandson Narasimhavarman II (700-728 AD), continued to build in Mamallapuram.

Source: Indian Express October 10, 2019 21:56 UTC