The Pallava dynasty was an Indian dynasty that existed from 275 CE to 897 CE, ruling a significant portion of southern India also known as Tondaimandalam. They gained prominence after the downfall of the Satavahana dynasty, with whom they had formerly served as feudatories.
The Pallavas became a major power during the reign of Mahendravarman I (600–630 CE) and Narasimhavarman I (630–668 CE), and dominated the southern Telugu Region and the northern parts of the Tamil region for about 600 years, until the end of the 9th century. Throughout their reign, they remained in constant conflict with both the Chalukyas of Badami in the north and the Tamil kingdoms of Chola and Pandyas in the south.
The Pallavas were finally defeated by the Chola ruler Aditya I in the 9th century CE.
The Pallavas are most noted for their patronage of architecture, the finest example being the Shore Temple, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Mamallapuram.
Kancheepuram served as the capital of the Pallava kingdom. The dynasty left behind magnificent sculptures and temples, and is recognized to have established the foundations of medieval South Indian architecture. They developed the Pallava script, from which Grantha ultimately took form. This script eventually gave rise to several other Southeast Asian scripts such Khmer.
The Chinese traveler Xuanzang visited Kanchipuram during Pallava’s rule and extolled their benign rule.
The first group of Pallavas was mentioned in Prakrit (a simple and popular form of Sanskrit) records, which tell of King Vishnugopa, who was defeated and then liberated by Samudra Gupta, the emperor of Magadha, about the middle of the 4th century ce.
Pulakeshin II was defeated and killed by the Pallava ruler Narasimhavarman I in 642 CE.
The actual decline of the Pallavas started during the long reign of Dantivarman with a belligerent Pandyans encroaching from the south. … It is assumed that Kampavarman defeated his brother early in the reign but left him on the throne, making his son, Aparajita the successor of Nripatunga
Pallava kings ruled current northern part of Tamil nadu, division of Andhra and the Karnataka region from 275 CE to 897 CE. i.e: Around 600 years upto 9th century with Kanchipuram as a capital. They ruled and influenced the ancient Tamilakam and Ceylon.