His maternal grandfather, Rafiq Ghaznavi, was a well-known musician and since both his parents were writers, he was into showbiz from an early age.
[1] Khayyam Sarhadi was married to a TV actress Atiya Sharaf.
[1] In Pakistan, Sarhadi started his career from acting and directing theatre plays and later started working in TV dramas with Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV) where he was spotted and picked up by noted PTV producer Yawar Hayat Khan.
[1][2] Khayyam Sarhadi died of a sudden heart attack during the shooting of a TV drama serial on 3 February 2011 at the age of 62 in Lahore.
[3][2] After his death, veteran Pakistani actor/director Jawed Sheikh paid tributes to him by saying that he had worked together with him and remembers Sarhadi as a versatile actor and fun to be with.