The MasterChef Australia star, who has impressed the judges with his dishes week after week, auditioned for Indian Idol in 2007.
“I used to sing for my engineering college band,” Sandeep, 36, tells TV WEEK. “It [Indian Idol] was a good experience, but I didn’t make it past the first round.”
Sandeep still likes to practise his vocals, especially while he’s cooking.
“I sometimes hum Hindi songs in the MasterChef kitchen, much to the amusement of everyone – because they can’t understand a word!”
Sandeep with his wife Prahalika and his son Siddhant (Image: Network 10.)
Familiar with the reality TV auditions process, Sandeep wowed the judges during the first round.
He’s continued to impress them, drawing on his heritage to create flavourful dishes.
Born in Kashmir in the early 1980s, Sandeep spent eight years there with his family before militancy forced them south, leaving all their possessions and migrating to Bangalore in 1990.
It was in Bangalore that Sandeep’s passion for cooking grew, with the contestant revealing he’s still most confident in the kitchen using spices.
Sandeep is a whiz in the kitchen (Image: Network 10.)
The IT project manager says that if he wins MasterChef, he’d love to use the prize money to travel the world with his wife Prahalika and their eight-year-old son, Siddhant.
“I’d take them to Bali and the Great Barrier Reef,” he explains. “My son just loves the water. Sometimes we call him ‘the water baby’.
“I’d also like to take them to Kashmir. I want to show my son where his ancestors are from. It’s important to know where you came from.”
MasterChef Australia airs Monday to Thursday, and Sunday, 7.30pm, 10
