MasterChef Australia fans have been delighted by this week’s special trip to Hong Kong. However, there was one contestant mysteriously missing from the group: Savindri ‘Sav’ Perera. Where did she go???

Judge Andy Allen announced her absence at the beginning of the episode, saying she wasn’t able to fly to Hong Kong with the rest of the gang. 

“Look guys, unfortunately for some personal reasons, Sav won’t be able to join us this week, but we’ll be seeing her when we get back into the MasterChef kitchen,” he told the group. 

Did Savindri ‘Sav’ Perera miss her flight? (Image: 10)

As a result, Sav was missing during last night’s episode and will be absent from Tuesday’s episode, but will be back on screen when the group returns to Australia. 

Some fans were worried her absence would rule her out for elimination, but the show has made sure the group in Hong Kong is cooking for a chance to win immunity, rather than sending anyone home. 

Why didn’t Sav go to Hong Kong with the MasterChef Australia contestants?

Social media has been buzzing with many confused fans wondering why Sav was missing from the Hong Kong promos.

“Where is Savvv?” one asked, while another said: “I’m so panicked RN I can’t see Sav in any of the Hong Kong trailers.”

Fans floated a bunch of theories on Reddit and X (formerly Twitter) regarding complications that could have stopped Sav from getting to Hong Kong. These included health, visa and family issues – but none have been confirmed by producers or Sav herself. 

“Serious question, but do you think they warned the contestants ahead of time that they needed passports? Cause if Pezza has never been overseas, he probably didn’t have a passport. It got me thinking if that wasn’t the case, then maybe Sav didn’t have one, which is why she’s not in HK,” one person suggested. 

“I can’t imagine she would have a whole week off from the show if it was [filmed] in Australia, so maybe it is visa issues?” another asked.

“It’s possible that Sav is an Australian permanent resident who still holds a Sri Lankan passport, in which case her ‘personal reasons’ could be a lack of passport privilege. The visa process for Sri Lankan citizens to visit Hong Kong is complicated and expensive,” a third fan suggested. 

Sav will return to screens when the competition kicks back off in Australia. (Image: 10)

When another MasterChef Australia fan said Sav’s absence wasn’t “fair” and gave her a leg up, the same X user replied, saying Sav would actually be the one at a disadvantage.

“No eliminations in HK. And others have missed eliminations due to illness, they’re automatically in the next elimination. I think the biggest disadvantage here is for Sav, missing the all-expenses paid travel and the experience the others are getting,” they wrote.

If the next challenge in the Melbourne MasterChef kitchen is related to Hong Kong week, Sav will definitely be on the back foot. 

MasterChef Australia airs Sunday through to Wednesday at 7:30 pm AEST.

Feature image: Channel 10