The Simla Hill Railway starred in 'Great Railway Journeys' on the Beeb last year, I think, Gamla. Beloved, as you know, of Rudyard Kipling and the British during the days of the Raj, and a wonderful train kept running very smartly by its staff. You'd thoroughly enjoy that and the Jodphur-Jaipur run, with Jaipur a must-see city of great history and beauty. There's still a resident Maharajah with a lineage that goes back centuries - not sure if some of his palace is open to the public, but you could check. I had a feeling that part of it was.
Agra and the Taj Mahal - take an Ambassador taxi from New Delhi to see it. You'll be a bit pestered by guides, but they're generally very friendly. Loads of semi-precious stones worked into table tops, jewellery, little boxes, etc. on its outskirts by craftsmen - worth looking at the ancient ways in which they still produce these products. If you see the Taj, be sure to walk backwards when leaving it - the optical illusion is that it is following you!
Mumbai has a thriving Turf Club - if you have any racing ID you might get in free. Very pretty place with old colonial look to it. The Taj Hotel would be the place to stay, of course, if only for one night, but I'm not sure if it's been refurbished after the terrorists fired it up. There are masses of back-packer style hostels as well as mid-price hotels, but once you're out of the well-known names, some of the facilities may be a bit basic, even now.
Calcutta is absolutely manic! You'll find that getting around any of the towns and cities is a hoot, as holy cows litter the roads, dozing or raiding fruit stalls, and they can't be shooed away, so your taxi (car or scooter) will often have to zig-zag around those, the hundreds of devil-may-care pedestrians, the cart-hauliers, and the wonderful tiffin delivery boys on bikes and scooters, still delivering hot lunches to offices in stacked-up pots balanced several high!
Out on the country roads you'll still quite possibly see camels, dancing bears, bullock carts, etc. Check what festivals might be on where you're going - some of the Hindu ones are spectacular, with huge puppets of their gods, re-enactments of famous battles, etc. It is probably the most colourful country on Earth, and one of the most hard-working. Everyone is doing something!
On the downside, be aware that very young children might be offering you heroin, coke, hash, or 'nice girls' the minute they see you, and that badly-disabled (sometimes deliberately mutilated) children still appear at stop lights to beg from cars; and that in some places, lepers may still be seen, minus noses, fingers, lips, etc., begging. These are distressing sights when you're not expecting them, so just be warned. You may also see very young children and even babies used in street shows by their parents - the most alarming sight I saw was a swaddled baby strapped onto a 10-foot bamboo pole, which the father then balanced on his forehead, before running with it. You're expected to marvel at these sights and lob a few coins, not ask for the number of Social Services!
It is, therefore, as is often said, a country of contrasts. You will see trays and trays of jewel-encrusted bracelets being tried on in luxurious jewellery stores by high-caste Indian ladies, who will walk straight past the crippled beggars outside. You may see naked, ash-covered holy men with staring eyes, mumbling incantations, totally ignored by the public. It's a fabulous, fascinating place. Do go on the steam trains, though - and check out how many hundred people you can count clinging to the outside of them!
