Huma Qureshi, who was born and brought up in Delhi, moved to Mumbai to audition for film roles, auditioning for a film which was never made. She signed a two-year contract with Hindustan Unilever to appear in television commercials. During the shoot of a Samsung mobile commercial, Anurag Kashyap noticed her acting ability and signed her for his films.

Qureshi made her feature-film debut with a supporting role in the 2012 critically acclaimed crime drama Gangs of Wasseypur and Gangs Of Wasseypur II, which earned her several nominations at various award functions.

That year, Qureshi also starred in the comedy Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana, opposite Kunal Kapoor. She was next seen in Kannan Iyer's Ek Thi Daayan, alongside Emraan Hashmi, Konkona Sen Sharma and Kalki Koechlin. Her upcoming films include D-Day and Dedh Ishqiya.