Chandra was born Melanie Kannokada to Malayali Indian parents in Buffalo Grove, Illinois.[3] Chandra is a 2nd degree black belt in Shotokan Karate[4] and a two-time bronze medalist in the Pan American games, where she represented the United States in sparring as part of the United States Junior National Karate Team in Sao Paolo in 2000, Caracas in 2001, and Orlando in 2002.[3]

After high school, Chandra earned a Mechnical Engineering degree from Stanford University.[1] Upon graduation, Chandra initially began working at consulting firm McKinsey & Company, which she left to concentrate on her interest in modeling and acting. She stated that she found the management job "intellectually fascinating" but not something she wanted to do "getting up every morning".[3]