Room sheet · Modular kitchen · Mumbai region
₹2.8–7.2L
Single kitchen · 8–16 rft · ex. white goods
A kitchen is a workshop you cook in — here’s what it actually costs.
Typical run
8–14 rft
Per rft · installed
₹28–55k
Lead time
5–7 wks post-design
Share of 2 BHK BOQ
~28%
01 · THE FOUR LAYOUTS
Pick the layout, then the brand.
The modular industry sells layouts as features. They aren’t. The layout is dictated by the room — its dimensions, the window, the gas pipe, the plumbing wall, the door swing. The brand catalogue comes after.
Straight
1 BHK
Run
· 8–10 rft
Cost
· ₹2.8–4.2L
Single counter against one wall. Fewest corners, fastest build. Triangulation suffers past 10 ft.
L-shape
2 BHK
Run
· 12–14 rft
Cost
· ₹3.6–5.4L
Two perpendicular counters. The default — good triangulation, opens to dining. Right answer 70% of the time in MMR flats.
U-shape
3 BHK
Run
· 8–10 rft
Cost
· ₹4.6–6.8L
Three counters, two corners. Maximum storage per sqft. Demands a window for ventilation; tight for two cooks.
Island
Open-plan
Run
· 16–22 rft
Cost
· ₹5.4–7.8L
Counter plus a freestanding block. Needs ≥1m clearance all around. Worth it only when the kitchen opens to dining or living.
Ranges assume base–mid spec: BWP ply carcass, laminate or PU matte shutter, branded hardware, granite or quartz counter. Numbers swing higher with veneer or lacquer shutters and quartz / dekton tops.
A REAL BOQ
The number on the paper. Line by line.
Below is a real BOQ from a delivered 3 BHK project — sections, items, units, rates. Client name, address and a handful of specific rates are redacted; the structure is exactly what you’d receive at Gate 05 before signing. Sample format — use it to compare what you’re being shown elsewhere.
Tier 01 — Lean & honest
Carcass
18mm BWP ply, ISI-marked. Edges sealed with PVC tape. The right answer 9 times out of 10.
₹1,650 / sqft
15–20 yr
Shutter
0.8mm laminate (Greenlam, Merino) on MDF or HDHMR. Matte preferred — fingerprints don’t show.
₹820 / sqft
10–12 yr
Counter
18mm granite, mid slab (Steel Grey, Imperial White). Polished. One slab reserved for the project.
₹520 / sqft
25+ yr
Hardware
18mm BWP ply, internally laminated on shelves & gables. Heavier, dimensionally truer over time.
₹6,400 / set
10–15 yr
Tier 02 — Considered & comfortable
Carcass
18mm BWP ply, ISI-marked. Edges sealed with PVC tape. The right answer 9 times out of 10.
₹2,100 / sqft
20–25 yr
Shutter
PU-painted MDF or 0.6mm veneer on HDHMR. Matte 6-coat lacquer. Fingerprint-free finish.
₹1,650 / sqft
10–12 yr
Counter
20mm quartz · Caesarstone or Kalingastone · slab approved before cutting.
₹1,650 / sqft
25+ yr
Hardware
Hettich AvanTech YOU or Hafele Moovit · drawer organisers · soft-close throughout · LED edge strips.
₹9,200 / set
15+ yr
Tier 03 — Premium · only where it matters
Carcass
Marine ply or aluminium frame system. Dimensionally perfect, water-tolerant near the sink.
₹2,800 / sqft
25+ yr
Shutter
Veneer with PU clear coat or imported lacquer (Hafele, Egger). Visible, honest grain.
₹2,400 / sqft
15+ yr
Counter
20mm dekton or sintered stone (Cosentino, Neolith). Heat & stain proof. Worth it if you cook hard.
₹2,800 / sqft
30+ yr
Hardware
Blum LEGRABOX · electric push-to-open on tall units · sensor lighting · everything Italian or German.
₹14,800 / set
20+ yr
Most clients we deliver land in Tier 02 throughout, with one Tier 03 splurge — usually hardware or counter. Pick the splurge consciously; the rest of the kitchen rewards restraint.
A REAL BOQ
One kitchen. Line by line.
A real BOQ from a delivered 2 BHK L-shape kitchen — sections, items, units, rates. A few rates are redacted where studios prefer not to share; the structure is exactly what you’d receive at Gate 05 before signing.
White goods — chimney, hob, oven, dishwasher — are excluded by design. They are client-chosen appliances, not joinery, and belong on a separate appliance schedule so the kitchen carcass cost stays honest and comparable.
04 · FIELD EXPERIENCE
Six things we’d avoid in a modular kitchen.
Patterns we see again and again — on our own early projects and on the quotes clients bring us to audit. Each one is cheap to avoid on paper and expensive to fix on site.
01
Acrylic / high-gloss shutters in Indian kitchens.
They look glorious for six weeks. Then the masala stains, the micro-scratches from a steel utensil, the matte-from-oil patch near the hob — and they can’t be re-polished without sending the shutter back to the factory. Flat laminate or PU matte outlasts gloss every time.
₹40–80k
regret factor: high
02
Tandem boxes everywhere.
Tandem drawers cost 2–3× a standard shelf. In a 1 BHK kitchen, only the base unit next to the hob needs tandem. The rest works fine with shelves + baskets. A mix is correct: tandem where it earns its keep, hinged shutter elsewhere.
₹35–65k
over-specified
03
Granite without seeing the slab.
Natural stone varies slab to slab. The “Steel Grey” in the catalogue and the slab in the yard are never identical. Always visit the vendor, photograph the actual slab, mark your initials on it — and the BOQ identifies that slab number.
₹15–40k
regret risk
04
Built-in ovens in a 1 BHK Indian kitchen.
Unless you actually bake 3–4 times a week, a built-in oven uses 4–6 sqft of storage and costs ₹18–25k extra. A countertop OTG does 95% of the job at half the cost and gives the cabinet space back.
₹50k
storage lost
05
No water line behind the carcass.
A properly sealed trap with the water line running behind the carcass keeps dampness off the wall and protects the carcass from moisture and fungus. Retro-fitting one into a finished kitchen means cutting the back panel — ugly and slow.
₹8–14k
+ 2 days retrofit
06
Brand-bundled “free design” service.
If the design is free, the markup is on the material. We’ve audited dozens — the same 8′ kitchen comes in 15–25% higher than an architect-drawn version using the same brand and hardware. The design fee was hidden, not absent.
15–25%
hidden markup
06 · FROM THE JOURNAL
Kitchen-relevant entries.
Field notes and methods from the studio — the thinking behind the numbers above.
BEGIN
Sixty minutes.
No deck. No deposit.
One conversation. No obligation. You leave with a brief, a budget bracket, and a feasibility note — whether or not we end up working together.