A thali is a common style of meal in India. The name comes from the type of plate it is served on. A thali meal usually consists of a small amount of each of several dishes plus some rice or chappatis and perhaps a little mango or lemon pickle. Many basic restaurants simply offer 'ready meals' rather than a choice of dish from the menu and a thali is what you get. This is a very healthy way of eating as it ensures that you have a balanced intake of vitamins, protiens, carbohydrates etc. at each meal. It also makes for delicious lunches and dinners. The combination of tastes from the different spices in each dish is wonderful.
Each of the dishes below would make a good filling meal, served with some rice or bread. What I recommend however, is that you make 2 or 3 of them and serve up a little bit of each. They'll all keep in the fridge for a few days and the taste of the spices will develop. When you cook another couple of dishes, save half of each and serve the other half with what's in the fridge from the day before - and so on. This is called the 'Thali cycle' (It isn't really, I just made that up).