Field experiment was conducted at Punjab Agricultural University Ludhiana to enhance the performance of dry direct seeded basmati rice with 20 treatment combination in split plot design viz. five nitrogen levels and timing in main plots [0, 40 kg ha^-1 (2 and 3 splits), 60 kg ha^-1 (2 and 3 splits)] and four seed priming treatments (control, osmohardening, water hardening and hydropriming).The direct seeded Pusa Basmati 1121 responded upto 60 kg ha^-1 of N applied in 3 splits (21, 42 and 63 days after sowing) and resulting higher grain yield, milled and head rice recovery%, KLAC and elongation ratio than 40 kg ha^-1 of N application applied in 2 or 3 splits. Crop with hydropriming gave superior performance as compared to other seed priming treatments. Highest grain yield of Pusa Basmati 1121 was obtained with hydropriming at 60 kg ha^-1 of N application applied in 3

splits.