Depinder Chhibber was a fan fave on MasterChef Australia and made it to the top four in an all-star season, but she told Chattr she was actually intimidated when she saw who she was up against.
Although Depinder constantly proved her skills by consistently steering clear of elimination rounds and getting glowing feedback from the judges, she admitted that one contestant made her nervous at the start.
“Laura [Sharrad] and I are such good friends now, but honestly, I used to be so scared. I didn’t talk to her for, like, a week. I didn’t even know what to say, she’s so good at what she does,” Depider told Chattr.
“You know, when you’re nervous? And, I was kind of Starstruck as well. I was like, How do I do this? It’s just going to be so difficult,” she laughed.
Depinder said that after she struck up the confidence to start a conversation with Laura, the two found common ground and hit it off.
“Once we started chatting, we bonded over babies, we bonded over travel, we bonded over life, and now we’re such good friends.”
Depinder added that it wasn’t just Laura who intimidated her, saying she struggled to feel confident when she initially saw how stacked her competition was.
“I used to get heart palpitations when I would first enter the kitchen, or even just hang around the competitors, because they were so amazing at what they do. Everyone had a skill, everyone had a background, everyone had an experience.”
“I felt quite overwhelmed, because I didn’t think I had that level of experience like a lot of them did, so I used to feel extremely intimidated. It was very scary.”
Depinder clearly proved just how talented she is, finishing four spots higher than her previous eighth-place ranking on MasterChef Australia Season 13, and beating out 19 of the other returnees.
Depinder was worried she’d be the first contestant eliminated on MasterChef Australia 2025
Despite being one of the strongest contestants on MasterChef Australia 2025, Depinder told Chattr that she was worried that she’d be the first person sent home.
“I never thought I’d make it past he halfway point when I went on to the show. I said to my husband, ‘I’m really scared because I don’t want to be the first person out’. So for me to be able to make it to top four was amazing. I’m so grateful.”
Depinder recognised her growth since her initial season and said that her confidence in herself has grown immensely since competing on MasterChef Australia 2025.
“I’ve come a long way since the first season,” she told Chattr. “You’re kind of finding your feet, you’re trying to discover your voice, yourself in the kitchen, everything was new, overwhelming and exciting.
“Coming back, I felt really grounded… connected to the food that I wanted to showcase and cook, and the food that actually tells my story and reflects my personality and my culture.
“I think, obviously, the pressure was still on, even more so, because we were all returning with something to prove. But this time around, I feel like I trusted myself more. I knew how to take those risks. I knew how to stay true to my style, but also take in Judges’ feedback when required, or when things didn’t go to plan. So there were a lot of lessons to be learned this time.”
MasterChef Australia airs on Sundays at 7pm and Monday – Tuesdays at 7:30pm on Channel 10 and 10Play.
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