Sundara Pandiyan II was one of two Pandyan princes who acceded to power in 1238 after Maravarman Sundara Pandyan I.^[1] He shared his rule with his elder brother Jatavarman Kulasekaran II for two years.^[2] This practice of shared rule with one prince asserting primacy was common in the Pandyan Kingdom.^[3] His years of reign are unclear. While KA Nilakanta Sastri mentions him as the Pandyan prince defeated by Rajendra Chola III around 1250,^[4] N Sethuraman mentions another Pandyan prince - Jatavarman Vikkiraman I as the Pandyan ruler between 1241 and 1250.

This period was marked with increasing Hoysala influence over Chola kingdom under the rule of Vira Someshwara.^[5] According to KA Nilakanta Sastri

Hoysala influence over the whole area of the Chola kingdom and even in the Pandya country increased steadily from about 1220 to 1245, a period which may be well described as that of Hoysala hegemony in the south.

The Pandyan inscriptions of this period indicate tribute being paid to the Hoysala king.^[2] The kilacheval temple grants, Vira Somi Chathurvedimangalam land grants and the presence of a Hoysala general Appana Dandanayaka for settling disputes at Thirumayam all indicate Hoysala dominance over the Chola Country.^[6]

Sundara Pandiyan II was attacked and defeated by the Rajendra Chola III around 1250. To prevent the complete revival of Chola power, Vira Someshwara temporarily allied himself with the Pandyas^[4]

• Aiyangar, Sakkottai Krishnaswami (1921), South India and her Muhammadan Invaders, Chennai: Oxford University Press
• Sastri, KA Nilakanta (1955), A history of South India: from prehistoric times to the fall of Vijayanagar (Hardback ed.), Chennai: Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-560686-8
• Narasayya (2009), Aalavaai: Madurai Maanagarathin Kadhai (in Tamil) (Hardback ed.), Chennai: Palaniappa Brothers, ISBN 978-81-8379-517-3
• Sethuraman, N (1978), The imperial Pandyas: mathematics reconstructs the chronology