Next look at available flats. You are probably going to need to go through an agent to find anything. The rents advertised in the paper are not really what they're renting for, be prepared to be told that those are last month's rates and the rental for the same flat is now at least 10% higher.
Next step: set up an Indian bank account. And let me say, I think this would have been impossible without the help of the financial people at ATREE. I can't even imagine how we would have done this, but in just over 2 weeks the account was set up, the misspelled name corrected (after an hour in the bank, they got it changed in the computer system and then had me cross out the misspelled name and hand-write it correctly on the front page of my passbook) and the account number on the checks corrected (again, they just pulled out a pen and re-wrote the number on each and every check in the book). A few more days and internet banking was established (I think. but I haven't actually tried it yet).
Step Five: deposit the money. Now at this point you are getting nervous with that kind of cash sitting around in an apartment that you just hope you are the only ones with a copy of the key, but you never know for sure. You start to spend some of it on groceries and setting-up costs (in the case of our apartment, "Fully-furnished" meant hot water heaters, 2 single beds and one double, a couch and two chairs). Dishes, tables, linens, etc all had to be purchased. No problem, we now know the ATM system and feel pretty confident of being able to withdraw our daily maximum of INR 1,000,000 with a minimum of taxi rides between ATMs (one word: high-end malls -- they have multiple ATMs available and, despite making you feel like a criminal as you slink from one machine withdrawing cash until it locks you out, then moving to the next one, make it comparatively easy to get the cash). And when standing in a line at an ATM, remember to leave no more than 8" between you and the person ahead of you, even if they are in the process of withdrawing cash. Anymore than that and someone will step in between you. As you are getting ready to head to the mall for the final withdrawal, you receive a warning from an Indian friend: "oh, by the way, don't get excited about it, but there is a daily deposit limit of INR 49,000." Oh. That makes it a bit complicated. Calculate the time it will take to deposit the money. 3.2 lakh at 49,000/day. OK. 7 days to deposit the money.
The bank account you've set up is at a branch 30-45 minutes away from your flat. Someone agrees to meet you there to help you with your deposit. There is a form to fill out which requires that (in duplicate; you almost always need to turn in multiple hand written copies of every form) you fill in your account information, your branch information, your contact information, and the amount you are depositing. Oh yeah, and an exact count of how many bills of each denomination you are depositing. This is a very tiny form and you need to squeeze things into the little lines. And I had over 100 bills of multiple denominations. It took me three tries to get the form filled in correctly. Each time I made a mistake I had to start a whole new form. It was a long morning in the bank.
No way am I traveling for nearly 2 hours each day just to deposit this money (and, oh yeah, and my home branch is only open from 9am-2pm. And they close for lunch from 12-1pm, on my second try to deposit the money I missed bank hours).
Step six: Find the local branch of your bank account. You are, of course, completely incapable of doing this. All those great internet search skills you thought you had are simply worthless. You have no idea where to find the bank. You call for help. Someone finds the nearest branch to your flat. Only 7 blocks from your house, you are very happy. This is much better than arguing over fares with an auto-rickshaw driver every day. You happily traipse to the bank, INR 49,000 in hand. It takes you 3 tries to figure out which of the 12 counters will let you deposit cash into your account. You are told that since this is not your home branch you can only deposit INR 25,000 per day. You rip up the pre-filled deposit form (you thought you were so clever to take one home and fill it in there), separate your money into two equal piles and fill out a new form. This branch is open from 10am-2pm, no lunch break. You come to the branch every day, except that there are a lot of holidays and two weeks later you are still depositing money. And the children's school wants fees paid by check, so there's another couple weeks of deposits to be made.
You go to the bank every day. Everyday you stand in line at the right counter. When standing in line you are careful to leave almost no space between you and the person in front of you. Even so, you often lose your place in line as someone finds a way into the few inches you've left undefended. When the man standing behind you continuously snorts, hawks, and blows into the back of your neck you stand there stoically, teeth gritted; no moving or you will lose that spot in line. The bank woman asks (mostly in Kannada) if INR 25,000 is your daily pay (unskilled, full time workers make about INR 7,000/month), you try to explain what you are doing. She tells the other customers that you make INR 25,000 per day and deposit it as soon as you are paid. You give up and just smile.
Last step: Get your passbook updated. Each account has a passbook. Like the savings books we had as a kid. After depositing your money you must sit in a waiting area for 5-10 minutes while your deposit is entered into the computer system and makes its way to the lady at the front desk. If you go to the lady too soon she will send you back to the chairs, telling you that it is not in the system yet. The lady cannot read small text which includes your account number printed in the book. Kind gentlemen take your passbook from you and read the number to her (she cannot understand you when you read it). Someone writes your number on the front cover of the book. However, that ink is too faint and still cannot be read by the lady at the desk. Finally you get smart and painstakingly copy over the writing in dark Sharpie (Indian's have beautiful handwriting and I have a feeling that the way I write my numbers would be unintelligible). This works! The lady at the desk can now read your account number without having to call on another banking customer for help. She inserts your passbook into a printer and it miraculously finds it's spot on the page and writes a new line for the daily deposit.
REPEAT ABOVE STEPS UNTIL NEEDED AMOUNT IS DEPOSITED INTO THE ACCOUNT