Important Battles question: The Battle of Vatapi (642 CE) was fought between the Chalukyas and whom?

The source-backed, question-specific record explains: The Battle of Vatapi (642 CE) saw the Pallava king Narasimhavarman I (Mamalla) defeat and kill the Chalukya king Pulakesi II and capture the Chalukya capital Vatapi (modern Badami). This was a significant victory for the Pallavas. This evidence establishes the historical relationship required in this Important Battles item. A correct solution must preserve the exact battle, date, participants, commander, location, outcome or significance requested by the stem. Similar periods, genres or national traditions do not make two battle facts interchangeable. Option A gives Pallavas and satisfies every condition stated in the question. The remaining choices—Rashtrakutas, Cholas and Pandyas—do not satisfy the complete requirement. The reliable checking method is to identify the named battle first, recall or verify its verified participant or outcome, and then read qualifiers such as “both works,” “original language,” “first published,” “correctly matched” or “incorrectly matched.” These qualifiers determine what counts as the answer. Replaying that method for this Important Battles question confirms Pallavas without relying on option position. This approach builds accurate historical knowledge and careful option elimination for SSC, Railway, Banking, Defence, State and other competitive examinations.