Who among the following rulers in ancient India had assumed the titles 'Mattavilasa', 'Vichitrachitta' and 'Gunabhara'?

Question

Who among the following rulers in ancient India had assumed the titles 'Mattavilasa', 'Vichitrachitta' and 'Gunabhara'?

1. A. Mahendravarman I (Correct answer)
2. B. Simhavishnu
3. C. Narasimhavarman I
4. D. Simhavarman

Correct Answer

Option A — Mahendravarman I

Detailed Solution & Explanation

The correct answer is Mahendravarman I.

Key Points

• Explanation: Mahendravarman I (c. 600-630 CE), the Pallava ruler of Kanchipuram, bore many titles, among them Mattavilasa, Vichitrachitta (the curious-minded) and Gunabhara.
• He was himself a dramatist and wrote the Sanskrit farce Mattavilasa Prahasana, from which one of these titles derives.
• Why the other options are wrong: Simhavishnu was his father; Narasimhavarman I (Mamalla) was his son, famed for defeating Pulakeshin II and for the monuments at Mamallapuram; Simhavarman was an earlier Pallava ruler.
• None of them bore these titles.

Additional Information

• Mahendravarman I initiated the rock-cut cave temple style of Pallava architecture — the Mandagapattu inscription records a temple built without brick, timber, metal or mortar.
• Originally a Jain, he was converted to Shaivism by the Nayanar saint Appar.