Aarti Sequeira Biography
Aarti Sequeira (full name – Aarti Lucica Sequeira) is an Indian-American Television Personality and Chef known for recently starring in “Cutthroat Kitchen: Knives Out”. She is also known as the winner Season 6 of “The Next Food Network Star”. Additionally, Sequeira is known for appearing in other shows like “Taste in Translation”, “Aarti Paarti”, “Halloween Wars”, “Selena + Aarti Sequeira: Friendsgiving”, “Guy’s Grocery Games”, and “The Next Food Network Star”.
Aarti Sequeira Age
Sequeira is 46 years old as of 2024. She was born on August 19, 1978, in Mumbai, India, and therefore she celebrates her birthday every year on August 19.
Aarti Sequeira Height / Measurements
Sequeira is of average body stature and stands at an approximate height of 5 feet 6 inches.
Aarti Sequeira Husband / Children
Sequeira is a married woman and her spouse’s name is Brendan “Bren” McNamara (a famous actor). The duo had their very first encounter when they were at Northwestern University, and they wedded in the year 2003. In the year 2013, they lived in Mid City, L.A., but they moved to Raleigh, N.C. in the year 2020. Sequeira and her spouse have 2 daughters: Moses Marigold and Eliyah.
Sequeira often shares photos with her husband and kids on Instagram, where she is very active. She and her family are devoted Catholic. Besides cooking, she enjoys improv theatre and even took classes – she once said that she gave her the confidence to start posting her own cooking videos. Her other hobbies are listening to good music, checking out art galleries, and Middle Eastern dancing.
Aarti Sequeira Family / Relatives
Sequeira was born to Rose Sequeira (mother) and her father whose name is unknown. Her family came from Mangalore, a city in Karnataka. She has 2 sisters (their names are under review) and was brought up in a traditional Indian Catholic household. When she was a baby, the family relocated to Dubai so her dad could find better work.
Sequeira says that cooking was a big part of her family life – she got much of her love for food from her Indian roots and her mom. She called her grandma an amazing cook. Sequeira’s mom started a recipe journal after her own mother passed – it inspired Sequeira to begin one too at age 10. She also says that her favorite food memories are her mom’s daily cooking and her dad’s weekly market trips. Also, she used to try other cuisines like Italian pasta at a friend’s house and shawarmas every Friday. As a kid, she pretended to host a cooking show and loved performing – this earned her the nickname “Showcase.” She moved to the U.S. in the year 1996.
Aarti Sequeira Education
Sequeira first went to a mostly Indian school in Dubai, then switched to a British one when she was 7 years old – she says that this made her feel like an outsider at first. She joined music activities like piano and choir. Sequeira is a 2000 graduate of Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism – there she obtained a degree in Broadcast Journalism and a focus on International Relations. While there, she worked at the student TV and radio stations – she briefly reported on Congress in Washington, D.C. for a North Dakota station. She said Medill was tough -but it made her stronger and more confident.
Aarti Sequeira CNN Career
When she was very young, Sequeira was always aspiring to become a journalist – this was after she watched CNN’s report of the Gulf War. She looked up to Christiane Amanpour and dreamed of working at CNN one day.
Just 2 weeks after college, Sequeira began working for CNN in Chicago, IL as a production assistant. A year later, she moved to CNN’s New York office – there she held th role of producer and assisted in reporting major events like the 9/11 attacks. She became the producer of stories on topics like economic issues and firefighters’ struggles. Later, she earned a promotion to segment producer and stayed at CNN until the year 2003. In the following year (2004), she moved to Los Angeles, CA.
Sequeira did some freelance work for CNN’s Los Angeles office as well as other media outlets – most especially in entertainment. However, finding steady work was hard – she started to feel like journalism was not the right path anymore. This was a tough moment for her – she says that it felt like she had lost part of who she was. Cooking, however, gave her some comfort during that time.
Aarti Sequeira Cooking Career Start
Sequeira first began by working on the HBO documentary “Sand and Sorrow”, and while there, she found herself drawn to cooking. She got inspired by a cookbook wedding gift and a cooking class her husband enrolled her in. She earned a professional certificate from the New School of Cooking in the year 2007 and interned at a top restaurant but realized she did not want to run one herself. Encouraged by a friend, she launched a fun YouTube cooking show called “Aarti Paarti” in the year 2008 – she blended Middle Eastern and Indian recipes with light comedy. Though she battled self-doubt and imposter syndrome – she shared her honest journey helped her connect with viewers and build a loyal following.
Aarti Sequeira Net Worth
Through Sequeira’s career as a Television Personality and Chef, she has been able to accumulate a net worth that ranges between $1 Million and $3 Million.
Aarti Sequeira Depression | Mental Health
Sequeira went through post-partum depression after her daughter Eliyah was born – this inspired her to support women facing similar challenges. To date, she works with Postpartum Support International to help moms with post-natal mood issues.
Aarti Sequeira Cutthroat Kitchen: Knives Out
Sequeira is one of the judges in the Food Network’s reality TV series, “Cutthroat Kitchen: Knives Out”. The show premiered Season 1 on May 13, 2025. The show brings top chefs together to face hard and unexpected cooking tasks. They each start with $25K, which they can spend to get ahead or mess up their competitors. Playing dirty is part of the game. Brian Malarkey is the host of the show.
Here are the other judges of this season;
- Alex Guarnaschelli
- Jet Tila
- Scott Conant
- Maneet Chauhan
Aarti Sequeira Website
Sequeira has a website, where she updates her portfolio. To visit her website, click here.
Aarti Sequeira Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
Sequeira is active on her social media accounts. She has about 328K followers on her Facebook Page, about 35.9K followers on her Twitter account, and around 356K followers on her Instagram account.