In Nandi’s Charge, the first book of the Battle of Vathapi series, author Arun Krishnan takes us through the riveting tale of preparations on the Pallava side for an eventual campaign against Pulikeshi and the Chalukyas. A young king, Narasimhavarman, is out to keep a promise made to his dying father. Can the young lion keep his word? At the dawn of the 7th century CE, Bharat was a land in ferment, politically, socially and ideologically. It was a time of great religious revival. Santana Dharma was trying to reassert itself with the start of the Bhakti movement in the South. King Harsha at Kannauj, King Pulilekeshi at Vathapi and King Narasimhavarman at Kanchi loomed large over the Indian political horizon at that point.