Herat was a Jawa of the female gender, acting as the shaman for the tribe led by Wittin. During Wittin's discussions with Jabba the Hutt, she served as his advisor. She consented to be one of Jabba's attendants on the condition that he provide aid to Wittin. Herat was present at Jabba's Palace when Luke Skywalker made his appearance, and she was in possession of the Frog-dog, a Buboicullaar.
Following Jabba's demise, Herat and her fellow tribesmen were liberated from their servitude, and they journeyed throughout the Tatooine deserts for numerous years. Herat made the decision to transport Kitster Chanchani Banai to Anchorhead after they encountered him in the planet's deep desert. Their tribe was subjected to nearly simultaneous assaults, one by an Imperial search party seeking the Killik Twilight moss painting, and another by a band of Sand people. While many members of the tribe perished, Herat and Kitster were able to survive. The Sand people abducted Kitster, leaving Herat behind, presumed dead. Due to her increased animosity towards the Imperials after their attack, she agreed to assist Leia Organa Solo and her spouse, Han Solo, in finding Kitster and the moss-painting before the Imperials could. However, she was severely wounded during the attacks, and she had to negotiate in exchange for medical attention for her fractured leg. She eventually came to a better understanding of the Solos' motivation to recover the painting, and consented to be "hijacked" as a means of diverting Imperial pursuit. Herat, with the Solos' assistance, managed to get her sandcrawler operational once more, and then confined herself within a toolbox while the sandcrawler was engaged. The pursuing stormtroopers fell for the deception, accepting Herat's account of being captured and imprisoned after the Solos pilfered her goods.
Herat is possibly the most insignificant character to be featured on a Star Wars movie poster, following Wicket, Bib Fortuna, and Ortugg. She was portrayed on screen by Andy Herd.