I'm planning a trip to India. How do I decide which places to visit?

India has 28 states and many states have their own distinct culture, traditions, history, and cuisine. It takes many months to properly sample all that India has to offer, and most people who visit India (or even Indians themselves) have probably visited only a fraction of the interesting places. So, pick a particular culture that's interesting to you (for example Rajasthani), and based on the available budget and time pick a few nearby places to visit. While visiting the places, don't forget to enjoy the local cuisine, though be careful to do so in restaurants that are well reviewed and to drink only bottled water to prevent water-borne stomach diseases.