What tyres would be better suited? 32c or 35c I'm from, Kolkata, India, and the place isn't best known for its roads, at least. Thinking of getting a new bike.. But I happen to be someone who's got absolutely no knowledge about any, and I'm even yet to ride a geared bike!
I don't want to run into many punctures and still have a comfortable ride. The bike would mostly be used for commute and then for longer rides during the weekends (100 kilometres or more). I'm guessing if I have thinner tyres they're very likely to get punctured often. So I chose relatively thick tyres, but not too thick since that'd get me lower speeds.. Would 700×35c tyres be better or 700×32c?
The attached image I'd of how typical roads here happen to be, if there arises a need for reference.
Good wide tires don’t necessarily have bad rolling resistance. If you have to go slow because of bad roads it will slow you down much more (and be much more uncomfortable).
I’d consider going even wider than 35mm or at least get a bicycle which has the option of fitting wider tires.
I’m not sure what’s available in your area but I’d get something like the Schwalbe Marathon Racer or Marathon Almotion or Continental Contact Urban or TopContact.
Punctures are not directly related to tire width. Pinch flats are mostly related to low tire pressure (i.e. your pressure being so low that the tube gets pinched between tire and rim).