After several Islamic invasions, the stability in the country disappeared and Portuguese, French and English traders took advantage of the fractured kingdoms to colonise India around the year 1600. The British East India Company became very powerful, but their policies caused widespread resentment resulting in 1857 in an insurrection popularly known as the First War of Indian Independence. After the revolt India came under the crown of the British Empire. Subsequently, the Indian independence movement began its struggle for independence. On August 15, 1947 India was granted independence from British rule, becoming a secular republic in 1950. The Republic of India now has a population of over one billion, the Indian economy being the fourth largest in the world in terms of purchasing power parity and is the world's second fastest growing economy. India also has a huge film industry, often referred to as "Bollywood", producing thousands of films each year, grossing much, much more than the average Hollywood film..

Visitors generally enter the country either by Mumbai or New Delhi. We decided to start our tour in Delhi and work our way through the state of Rajasthan, finishing in Mumbai. We stayed for two weeks in total which was sufficient time to cover the main attractions of Rajasthan but did not leave much scope for unscheduled stops.

We stayed at the wonderful Lake Palace Hotel, a familiar sight to Bond fans. For visiting Lake Palace locations from Octopussy it is easiest to stay at the hotel itself, which is reasonably priced by Western standards. For those on a tighter budget it is possible to visit the hotel for dinner if you have a reservation. If you are staying at the hotel, the romantically inclined can have dinner on a pontoon on the lake. It was a great experience.