Dharker made her screen debut in the 1989 François Villiers film Manika, une vie plus tard. Dharker subsequently went on to star in many American, French and Indian films. She has had many television roles in the UK, particularly in Cutting It and Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee, in which she co-starred with Meera Syal.
Her most internationally recognised role came in 2002 when she played Queen Jamillia, the Queen of Naboo, in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones. Dharker starred in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Bombay Dreams, both in London's West End and on Broadway (2004). She also starred in The Mistress of Spices (2005).
In 2006, she played the role of Asha in the film Outsourced.
In 2008, she played the role of Tara Mandal in the ITV soap opera Coronation Street.
In 2017, Dharker begun playing Nina Karnik in a returning role on long running BBC drama Holby City.
