According to the Aihole inscription and the Maruturu inscription, Pulakeshin invaded and captured Pishtapura (modern Pithapuram in Andhra Pradesh). The Maruturu inscription suggests that this event took place around or before 617–618 CE. The Aihole inscription states that subsequently, a fierce battle was fought near Kunala lake (identified with modern Kolleru Lake), whose water turned red with the blood of those killed in the war. These inscriptions do not name Pulakeshin's rival in these conflicts, but modern scholars identify him as a king of the Vishnukundina dynasty, which ruled in Andhra Pradesh.