Singavaram, an ancient village near Senji (Ginjee) has a historic cave-temple for Vishnu worshipped as Ranganatha. According to scholars, the name Singavaram could have originally been Simhapuram. Others opine that the name Simhapuram is because this place was founded by King Simhavishnu Pallava (6th century AD, while others claim it was founded by Narasimhavarman I Pallava (7th century AD.
This shrine is a cave-temple cut into the hill possibly in the 7th centuries AD during the Pallava era. The huge image of Ranganatha Svami, reclining on Adisesha, approximately 24 feet in length, has also been chiselled out of the same rock. Brahma emanates from the navel on a lotus while Bhudevi and another figure, identified as Prahlada are near the feet.
On the wall behind Ranganatha Svami are seen Garuda and the demons Madhu and Kaitabha. As there are pillars in front of the deity, the head, chest and feet of Ranganatha, can be seen through three separate entrances just as in the Padmanabha Svami temple in Thiruvanantapuram, Kerala.
Since this is a shrine that has been scooped out of the hill, there is no inner circumambulatory passage (pradakshina). A few inscriptions have been discovered in Singavaram belonging to the dynasties of the Cholas, Pandyas and Vijayanagara and other chieftains.
There is an interesting connection between the Ranganatha Svami temple in Singavaram and the Ranganatha Svami temple in Srirangam. When the temple-town of Srirangam was attacked by Ulugh Khan’s army in 1323 AD., the utsava-murti of Srirangam, Azhagiyamanavalan or Namperumal was taken out of this temple for safety to various places in South India.
Gopanna, a Vijayanagara official who had his residence in Ginjee went to Tirumala where the images of Azhagiyamanavalan and consorts were worshipped and took them to Singapuram (Singavaram) where they were worshipped. He subsequently brought the images to Srirangam where they were reinstated in 1371 AD.