| Succession: | Pallava Monarch |
| Predecessor: | Paramesvaravarman II |
| Successor: | Dantivarman |
| Birth Place: | Simhapura, Champa (present-day Trà Kiệu, Quảng Nam province, Vietnam) |
| Death Date: | 796 CE (aged 78) |
| Death Place: | Kanchipuram, Pallava Kingdom (present-day Tamil Nadu, India) |
| Spouse: | Reva |
| Issue: | Dantivarman |
| Dynasty: | Pallava |
| Father: | Hiraynayavarman |
Nandivarman II (718 CE – 796 CE) was a Pallava monarch who reigned in southern India. Sen states Nandivarman reigned from 731 CE to 796 CE and built the Vaikuntha-Perumal Temple.[1] He was born in the country of Champa (present-day Vietnam), in Simhapura into a local dynasty of Pallava origin and was elected as the Pallava monarch at the age of 13.[2]
Paramesvaravarman II was succeeded by a 12-year old Nandivarman II Pallavamalla who belonged to a collateral line of Pallavas called the Kadavas. The latter were the descendants of Bhimavarman, the brother of Simhavishnu. According to epigraphical findings, Hiranyavarman, the father of Nandivarman Pallavamalla belonged to the Kadavakula.[3] Nandivarman II himself is described as "one who was born to raise the prestige of the Kadava family".[4] He has commissioned the Tiru Parameswara Vinnagaram.[5]
The term Kaduvetti in Tamil means destroyer or clearer of forests as the Pallavas like their ancestor Mukkanti Kaduvetti alias Trilochana Pallava were known to often clear forests and introduce civilization by settling communities.[6] [7]
The previous monarch Paramesvaravarman II did not have an heir so the ministers, feudatories and advisors of the state took an expedition to neighboring states and distant lands to find a suitable prince of the original line. Upon reaching Kambujadesa, modern day Cambodia and southern Vietnam, they finally identified Nandivarman II as belonging to the original line and willing to ascend the throne. Accordingly, he was brought and then installed on the throne of the Pallava kingdom.[8] [9]
He married Reva, the daughter of the Rashtrakuta emperor Dantidurga around 751 CE. Their son Dantivarman succeeded him after his death in 796.