Joshi began her acting career on the stage at the age of 10. She made her film debut as a child actor in
J. Om Prakash's Hindi drama film
Apnapan, where she played the role of a beggar alongside
Sudhir Dalvi. The song
Aadmi Musafir Hai, sung by
Lata Mangeshkar and
Mohammed Rafi, was picturised on them. Subsequently, she featured in a few more Hindi films as a child actor, where she was credited as Baby Nivedita Joshi. In 1984, Joshi landed her first leading role in the Marathi family drama film
Navri Mile Navryala, directed by
Sachin Pilgaonkar, where she acted for the first time alongside her future husband
Ashok Saraf as a sister. The film was a huge commercial success. The same year, she also acted in
Gharcha Bhedi. In 1985, she was seen in brief roles in the films:
Ardhangi, Paisa Yeh Paisa, and
Uske Baad. Her leading role of the year was
Mahesh Kothare's directorial debut,
Dhum Dhadaka. It starred Kothare, Ashok,
Laxmikant Berde, and
Prema Kiran. The film was a remake of the 1964 Tamil film
Kadhalikka Neramillai. After its release, it became a box office hit and was a trendsetter, which brought young audiences to recognise the Marathi style of movie-making. Next, she played a college going girl in
Kashasathi Premasathi (1987), opposite
Ajinkya Deo. The song
Bhannat Ranwara from the film was a chartbuster. Her biggest hit of 1987 was Kothare's action comedy
De Danadan, which was inspired by the 1980 Hollywood film
Super Fuzz. In 1988, she once again collaborated with Pilgaonkar for the comedy drama film
Ashi Hi Banwa Banwi. Joshi played love interest from Miraj of Shantanu (played by
Siddharth Ray), along with an ensemble cast of Pilgaonkar, Ashok,
Supriya Pilgaonkar, Berde,
Ashwini Bhave, and
Priya Arun. Next, she starred in Marathi romantic dramas
Kiss Bai Kiss and
Gholat Ghol, both featuring Bhave and Berde, which were hits at the box office. The former was based on love triangle, which was also remade in Hindi as
Honeymoon (1992). Her final film of that year was
Mamla Porincha, a remake of the American film
9 to 5 (1980) about a womanising boss who has a bad eye on his female employees, fed up with him, they decide to teach him a lesson. In 1989, Joshi played the main lead role of a journalist of the daily newspaper Apradh who falls in love with a CID Inspector (portrayed by Kothare) in his directorial action comedy
Thartharat. The film was huge box-office success of that year. Her next releases were the comedy dramas
Balache Baap Brahmachari, De Dhadak Be Dhadak and
Pheka Pheki. The lattermost was remade in Hindi as
Golmaal Returns (2008). In 1990, she played a supporting role in the crime drama
Aamchyasarkhe Aamhich. Next, she starred in the drama film
Tuzhi Mazhi Jamli Jodi, which revolves around two girl-friends whose marriage gets fixed at the same time, and one has to go through troubles due to which their friendship is effected. The next releases were
Dhamal Bablya Ganpyachi and
Changu Mangu. All four films featured her husband, Ashok. Following these years, she was also part of the Hindi films
Narsimha (1991) and
King Uncle (1993). After a two-years gap from Marathi films, she starred in
Tu Sukhkarta (1993), where she portrayed a woman who has devoted her life to spirituality and intends not to get married. In 1994, she played the mother of a young boy who is kidnapped by robbers in Kothare's drama film
Majha Chakula. Her performance and the film were critically and commercially successful. This film also marked Joshi and Kothare's fourth and last collaboration together.
Majha Chakula was the last film she shot before her maternity break, but
Dhamaal Jodi (1995) was released later. Joshi's only appearance during her break was in the 2006 Marathi serial
Bandhan, which aired on
Zee Marathi. She made her comeback to films after 15 years, with the 2011 film
Aata Ga Baya, in which she was seen in a negative role. Her last feature in the film was
Deool Band. Joshi has played Asawari in the Marathi-language serial
Aggabai Sasubai on
Zee Marathi from 2019 to 2021, a role she reprised in the spin-off
Aggabai Sunbai. She played a role in
Colors Marathi's Bhagya Dile Tu Mala from 2022 to 2024 as Ratnamala Mohite. Currently, she is playing the role of Shubha Killedar in
Star Pravah's Aai Ani Baba Retire Hot Aahet. == Personal life ==