Holy s**t.. Are you kidding me silvie!???
That's insane. I guess you're fond of travelling on another level. Thumbs up for it
Btw, did you visit any place in Gujarat?
And nope, it's not a cultural thing as far as I believe. Traditional Indian culture has women as godesses & respect them more than men. It's a taboo for our civilization that some desparate illiterates & half-literates are always chasing women, especially foreigners & that ruins the entire country's impression, which impacts the tourism industry badly.
Things are improving however.
And travelling in train is not even preferred by most of the upper class rich urban citizens, unless it's an absolute necessity & 1st/2nd tier coach is available.
Trains are normally full of So many countryside (dehati) people with little manners and cleanliness, whom even we try to avoid as much as possible, tbh.
Imho, Consider volvo sleeping facilitated buses or 1st/2nd tier AC railway coach as a last resort, if flight isn't available & car is unavailable as well.
One more off-topic thing.
Finlad it is
Any idea what is best there!??