Shore Temple (detail); Mamallapuram, Tamil Nadu, India; 630–668 CE; Granite. Photograph: Pratyeka (2011), Wikimedia Commons

Also called Rajasimha, he was a ruler of the Pallava Dynasty and ruled parts of present-day Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh in the early-eighth century CE. He is known for patronising the Shore Temple in Mamallapuram and the Kailasanathar Temple in Kanchipuram.