A strong contender from day one, it feels like MasterChef Australia’s Savindri “Sav” Perera was destined to be on the show – and she thinks it was fate too!
“I actually applied in 2022 and got through to the stage where we were all flying in to film,” reveals Sav, 30. “But I had to pull out. I was in a different relationship at the time and under a lot of mental strain. I wasn’t in the right headspace.
“It was a big sign from the universe that it didn’t work out then, but it worked for this season. I’m in a much better space to actually handle the pressure.”
Calling on her Sri Lankan upbringing to create dishes full of flavour, Sav has been impressing the judges every week. The Adelaide banking consultant credits her beloved late mum Chandrika, who passed away in 2017, with giving her the skills to get this far in the competition.
“She was a curious cook and she did some wacky stuff sometimes,” Sav laughs. “It’s encouraged curiosity in me because there’s nothing she wouldn’t try. My palate comes from her.”
Sav knows Chandrika would be supporting her MasterChef adventure every step of the way, adding, “She would be frothing, honestly. I’ve thought about it a lot. She would literally call up every single person she knows, then wait for me to finish MasterChef and be like, ‘Alright, come back to Sri Lanka so we can have a big party!’ She’d be going so over the top. She would have been insanely proud of me.”
MasterChef Australia screens 7pm Sundays and 7.30pm Monday to Wednesday on TVNZ 2.
