The bowling struggles were compounded by Mahendra Singh Dhoni's arrival at 228 for six.
At No8 he was in a mood to dominate with 68, including 10 demoralising boundaries.
At the other end, Ajinkya Rahane composed 118, his maiden test century in his fifth test, to cement his place in the middle order. Their 120-run partnership for the seventh wicket was the cornerstone of the scorecard although Shikhar Dhawan's 98 offered starch to start.
"Dhawan and Rahane played well but Dhoni's counter-attack was the difference between an okay day for us and a good day for them," said BJ Watling, who took five catches.
"If we'd taken a wicket [when he and Rahane came together] then, we'd have been more in the hunt."
Coming into this match, New Zealand were on the cusp of winning two 'series' in a home summer for the first time in 24 years. The last time was against India and Australia (albeit a one-off test) in 1989-90.
Debate might spark as to the logic of producing a green top when the home side were up 1-0 with a test to play and leaving this summer's legacy hinging on a coin toss but ultimately accountability lies with the players.
There were not enough first innings runs and the Indian batting order defused New Zealand attempts to attack, especially with the second new ball where it took the hosts 12.2 overs to prise loose a wicket.
Catching was a New Zealand strength. Boult will again feature on worldwide television highlight reels for his one-handed effort - running at least a cricket pitch from deep cover to snaffle Rahane. It complemented his one-handed effort at point, also in Wellington, to remove Denesh Ramdin earlier this season.
Hamish Rutherford demonstrated sharp reflexes at short cover to take Virat Kohli, Peter Fulton showed safe hands at second slip and Watling cocooned five in his gloves. His 2.208 dismissals per innings is the best ratio of any New Zealand keeper with more than five test catches. Brendon McCullum is next best at 1.884.
"We'd have been facing a lot more [runs] if they didn't stick," Watling said of their overall catching effort.
The onus is on the New Zealand batsmen to apply themselves in the second innings without Ross Taylor as an anchor; his wife Victoria went into labour last night.
Fulton and Rutherford began under the selection microscope and, with Fulton dismissed for one, selection manager Bruce Edgar and his talent scouts will be watching the openers in the final two rounds of Plunket Shield with added interest. Tom Latham, Aaron Redmond and Martin Guptill appear contenders for a spot to the West Indies if faith in Fulton has ebbed.
Today poses a challenge for Latham who gets a chance to atone for a first innings duck. Much will also be sought from McCullum and Williamson as senior players while Anderson's repertoire of Indian Premier League strokes might best be used sparingly.
"The Kiwis are under pressure," Rahane said. "Our bowlers are doing a great job; we just need to bowl in the right areas. The pitch is offering a little bit of help for bowlers but not that much."
Said Watling: "There's still enough in it for bowlers but it has browned off and looks a decent batting track."
Survival is possible at the Basin. One example came 23 years ago when Martin Crowe and Andrew Jones - both of whom did a lap of the ground at tea yesterday as part of the 1992 World Cup reunion - produced a world record partnership of 467 to guide New Zealand to a draw against Sri Lanka. The visitors established a lead of 348 after dismissing New Zealand for 174. The hosts endured more than two and a half days to make 671 for four in their second innings.
Similar stuff will be required over the next three days.
