What salt air does to a specification
Within roughly a kilometre of the sea — which covers Worli, Bandra Bandstand, Juhu, Malabar Hill and Marine Drive — ordinary hardware corrodes. On these projects we change the specification rather than the maintenance schedule:
- SS 316 rather than SS 304 for exposed fittings, railings and external ironmongery.
- Powder-coated or anodised aluminium for any window, balcony or external element.
- Marine-grade plywood for joinery on external walls and balconies.
- Sealed and serviced AC units with corrosion-protected coils, which fail early otherwise.
- Avoid untreated mild steel entirely, including inside concealed frames where it cannot be inspected.
Design and build under one accountable roof
Getting materials into the building
A 3-metre book-matched stone slab does not fit in a passenger lift, and many premium Mumbai towers have a service lift sized for furniture, not for architecture. This is a design decision as much as a logistics one — it determines maximum panel sizes, whether stone is cut on site or pre-fabricated, and sometimes whether an element is built in sections with a deliberate joint.
We size panels to the service lift before we size them to the wall. The alternative is a beautiful drawing that stops in the lobby.
Greenbox principal designer
| Area | Housing character | Typical luxury budget | Key constraint |
|---|---|---|---|
| Worli / Prabhadevi | High-rise sea-facing towers | ₹45 L – ₹1 Cr+ | Salt air, lift sizes, strict societies |
| Bandra West | Premium apartments, some low-rise | ₹35 L – ₹80 L | Heritage rules in parts, tight access |
| Juhu | Low-rise premium, bungalows | ₹40 L – ₹1 Cr+ | Salt air, ground-floor damp |
| Malabar Hill / Breach Candy | Older premium stock | ₹50 L – ₹1.5 Cr+ | Ageing services, heritage considerations |
| Powai / BKC periphery | Newer large-format flats | ₹30 L – ₹60 L | Society rules, easier logistics |
Indicative total project budgets excluding GST for full-home interiors.
Selected work by Greenbox Design Studio. Tap any image to enlarge.
Frequently asked questions
How much do luxury interior designers charge in Mumbai?+
From ₹2,500 per sq ft, commonly ₹3,500–₹5,000+. In practice a luxury full-home project in Mumbai runs ₹35 lakh to ₹1 crore and above, depending on size, specialist rooms and how much is imported or bespoke.
What changes for a sea-facing apartment?+
Specification, mainly. SS 316 instead of SS 304 for exposed fittings, anodised or powder-coated aluminium for anything external, marine-grade plywood on external walls, corrosion-protected AC coils, and no untreated mild steel anywhere — including concealed frames.
How do you move large stone slabs into a high-rise?+
Often we do not. We size panels to the service lift, pre-fabricate off site where possible, and design deliberate joints when a single piece cannot physically reach the floor. This is settled at design stage, not discovered on delivery day.
Do you design home theatres in Mumbai apartments?+
Yes, and it is one of our most requested specialist rooms. Acoustics, riser heights, sightlines and speaker placement have to be resolved before the false ceiling is designed. See the home theatre case study for a delivered example.
Why do luxury projects take longer?+
Bespoke fabrication lead times, imported material shipping, specialist trades working sequentially rather than in parallel, and additional inspection cycles. Twenty to thirty-six weeks is normal. Compressing the programme is almost always paid for in detailing quality.