Wheat in India is grown generally in areas with access to irrigation. However, substantial area sown in the southern and central part of the country is vulnerable to water deficit and hence the crop often exposed to soil moisture stress. Water deficit can be attributed not only due to less precipitation but also due to lack of access to pump water for irrigating the crop. We made an attempt to assess drought responses of historical cultivars of wheat released for rain-dependent regions as well as for restricted-irrigation. Experiments were conducted at National Institute of Abiotic Stress Management located in dry and hot region in the southern part of the country. Well-watered treatment had 3 to 4 irrigation while the stressed imposed by withholding water at around anthesis. Soil moisture status was measured at frequent interval during the experiment which was carried out for three consecutive seasons. Genetic variation in more than 200 genotypes were assessed for physiological and yield related traits. These experiments allowed us to assess level of improvement in traits contributing to soil-moisture stress tolerance over the last few decades while the emphasis was on yield an yield related traits. We identified genotypes, which outperform the locally adapted cultivars and the traits contributing to their performance. The superior genotypes had better root system architecture which could be detected at seedling stage. Identified genotypes can serve as genetic source for improving drought and high temperature tolerance in wheat in the region.