Is food a reason to build an India trip around?
Yes. India’s food is one of its strongest travel arguments: thalis, chai, street snacks, regional cooking, vegetarian meals, markets and simple places where the meal explains the region better than another monument.
Answer
India makes the most sense when you stop treating food as something between sights. Food is how regions announce themselves: the breads change, the rice changes, the spice logic changes, the tea breaks change, and a basic meal can tell you where you are better than a guidebook paragraph. Build time for markets, small restaurants, home-style cooking, sweets, snacks and slow meals after hard travel days. Be sensible about hygiene, but do not reduce the whole food culture to stomach-risk strategy. For many travellers, food is the reason the difficult days still feel worthwhile.