Nikhat Khan was born into the illustrious Khan–Hussain film family. Her father, Tahir Hussain, was a noted producer, director, and writer, while her uncle Nasir Hussain was a legendary filmmaker. She is the eldest sibling of actors Aamir Khan and Faisal Khan, and sister Farhat Khan Datta. Though she initially worked behind the scenes as a producer (Tum Mere Ho, 1990) and costume designer (Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, 1988), she later transitioned into acting, appearing in films like Mission Mangal (2019), Saand Ki Aankh (2019), and Tanhaji (2020).
Nikhat married Santosh Hegde, a pharmaceutical executive, and lived in Pune for 14 years before returning to Mumbai to pursue acting more actively. She has a daughter, Seher Hegde, and a stepson, Shravan Hegde. Despite entering acting later in life, she has carved a niche for herself in middle-aged character roles in films and web series such as Special Ops 1.5, Guilty Minds, and Hush Hush.