Take camera to India?

I'm going on a short business trip to Chennai and have been thinking about whether to take my KP and a couple of DA limited lenses (21mm, 40mm, 70mm) and maybe the Pentax-F 35-70.. It's a pretty discrete setup especially with the old tilt screen and hold at waist method.

Has anyone travelled to Chennai with camera gear? How safe did you feel using it? Are there any cultural or legal issues to be especially aware of?

I did take my KP and a couple of zooms to India. I was on a tour of the "Golden Triangle" so did not go to Chennai.
I photographed in the street, at the sights, on my own and with the group and experienced no problems. I think that as long as you apply common sense as to where you go, as you would in any country you should be fine. It might be worth having a good quantity of change with you if photographing people in the street as a little thank you if you have asked to photograph someone.

Enjoy your trip

And an example of an image where I tipped

I've never heard of people having problems in India. There are many places I would think twice, maybe take older (less valuable) gear, but India isn't on the list.

I have been to India a number of times and have never felt nervous about personal safety or equipment loss.
It is a country replete with photographic opportunities - people, scenery, buildings, markets, life .... enjoy