Perhaps if India was much less homogenous during the colonial era. If the Portuguese, French, and Dutch expand their colonial areas, and the British stay limited to various regions in Bengal and South India, that'll create the possibility of many independent states on the subcontinent.
Throw in some surviving native polities, like the Kingdom of Mysore and the State of Hyderabad, and you end up with maybe 10-12 independent states in India at the end of the colonial era. If there is significant instability at that time, as seems eminently possible, than they may reorganize along ethnic lines - Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, etc.
Badshah, did you change your name from something else?
Cheers,
Ganesha
EDIT: A good POD would be during the
First Anglo-Maratha War, which could, potentially, lead to the breakup of the Maratha and Mughal Empires. If there's a power grab by various European and Indian powers, than that could create the right conditions.