Gone are the days, when a kitchen would comprise a granite counter, a few cherry cabinets and a basic chimney. Extravagance is the buzzword today. It’s time to welcome avant-garde luxury with an impressive array of kitchen tools that can make anyone feel like a Masterchef.
Not only are the kitchens spa-like havens, they are also replete with the latest technology that has reduced cooking time. Interior designer, Vinita Chaitanya, who has designed swanky celeb homes across the country, includingthat of actor Deepika Padukone’s, states, “The sky is the limit when it comes to designing kitchens these days. People are spending between Rs 50 lakh to a few crores on their kitchens. Even Italian kitchens are going the Indian way. So apart from the grills and teppanyaki, there are working counters with hobs for making dosas. There are people who like a good blend of kitchen gadgets for both Indian and European cooking. I have even designed homes for a family of four with four refrigerators, a vegetarian fridge, a non-vegetarian fridge, deep freezers and wine coolers.”
It’s probably the surge of cooking channels that’s inspiring people to cook gourmet cuisine at home. Going the whole hog with three kitchens in his chic home is exporter Suchender Hirial and his wife Shalini. Suchender says, “Since both of us love to cook and entertain, we decided to have three kitchens. One is a Poggenpohl German kitchen, which is like the Rolls Royce of all kitchens. We also have a Nolte kitchen with Gaggenau Hausgeräte and Miele kitchen appliances. I also got a wood fire pizza oven made by Sukesh Ananth. Our house was designed around the kitchens and one-third of the cost of the house has gone only into the kitchens.”
Poggenpohl kitchens can cost anywhere from Rs 50 lakh to about Rs 3 crores with Miele appliances that can go upto a few lakhs. Snehal Mantri, director, Mantri Builders agrees that people are spending upto a crore on their kitchens. “These come with a large kitchen island, quartz or acrylic solid surface countertop, sensor shutters, segmentations of cold areas (in built refrigerator /chiller), hot areas (grills, OTG, microwave and cook tops), wet areas (sinks) and dry areas (prep counters and storage) sleek hob, sleek and stylish chimney, exterior shutters in hard wood and veneer finish and smart spaces. We have customised a lot of kitchen spaces, making dream kitchens a reality.”
For someone who loves to whip up a culinary frenzy everytime he plays with his pots and pans is Chef Aditya Bal of the TV show Chak Le India fame. Even though he’s best at rustic cooking, he says, “I swear by the Miele kitchens that come with top-end German technology in domestic kitchen appliances.”
Well, what can we say? Kitchens aren’t reserved for only the Masterchefs anymore!
