Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set to meet for the second informal summit on October 11 and 12 in Tamil Nadu's Mahabalipuram, a coastal town located about 56 kilometres south of Chennai.The setting of the summit derives significance from the fact that the historical city once had ancient maritime links with China during the Pallava dynasty. Mahabalipuram was a major port city in the 7th century and served as a gateway for import and export of goods from and to South India and China.Several epigraphical pieces of evidence, including coins with inscriptions of Chinese symbols found after archaeological excavations, points towards this age-old links between the Pallava dynasty and China.Mahabalipuram, the city earlier known as Mamallapuram was founded by the Pallava king Narasimhavarman I in the 7th century AD. Notably, It was during his reign that Chinese Buddhist monk-traveler Hiuen Tsang visited Kanchipuram, the Pallava capital. Tsang is often called
