Patiala is a city in the Punjab state of India. Patiala district is one of the erstwhile princely cities of Punjab. Located in the south-eastern part of the state.

Patiala means Pati (land) of Baba Ala Singh, who founded the state of Patiala

It is the administrative headquarters of Patiala District, and was the capital of the premier princely state in the former Punjab Province of British India, headed by the Sidhu dynasty. Patiala is famous for its turban (traditional headgear), paranda (tasselled tag for braiding hair), peg (Patiala Peg - a double or large peg of whiskey), and Jutti (traditional Punjabi footwear) and "patialashahi" salwaar. Famous Punjabi singer Pammi Bai has sung a song on the famous Patialashahi turban.

Capt. His Highness Maharajadhiraj Amarinder Singh is the current Maharaja of Patiala.

Any serving of alcohol which is double than the normal serving, or unusually large, is referred to as the Patiala Peg. This term is understood in most parts of India. There are multiple stories behind this epithet, most related to the opulent and hedonistic lifestyle of one of the maharajas of Patiala - Maharaja Bhupinder Singh, who was a heavy drinker.

Patiala is home town of many eminent personalities like cricketers Navjot Sidhu, Mohinder Amarnath, Reetinder Sodhi, Bollywood Stars Jimmy Shregill, Om Puri, Punjabi Singer Harbhajan Mann, Jet Airways Chairman Naresh Goyal & Sq Ldr Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian in space.

Culture and traditions

Patiala's sway over the Malwa area extended beyond merely political influence. Patiala was equally the set of religious and cultural life. Educationally, Patiala was in the forefront. Patiala was the first town in this part of the country to have Degree College - the Mohindra College - in 1870. The famous printing press of Munshi Nawal Kishore was also established here in the seventies of the 19th century. Patiala has had a culture of its own, evolving into a distinct "patialavi" culture. Patiala has also seen evolution of a distinct style of architecture. Borrowing from the Rajput style, its beauty and elegance are, however, moulded according to the local traditions.

With the active patronage of the erstwhile rules of Patiala, a well established style of Hindustani music called the "Patiala Gharana" came into existence and has held its own up to the present times. This school of music has had a number of famous musicians, many of whom came to Patiala after the disintegration of the Mughal Court at Delhi in the 18th century. At the turn of the century, Ustad Ali Bux was the most renowned exponent of this Gharana. Later his sons, Ustad Akhtar Hussain Khan and Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan achieved world wide fame and brought glory to the Patiala Gharana. This school of music continues to get the patronage of the State though the North Zone Culture Centre - NZCC - established at Patiala.

After partition of India, a lot of Bahawalpuri people migrated from Bahawalpur (Pakistan) and settled in Patiala. This Community has developed a vibrant, lively and happening colony known as Tripuri Town within Patiala. Most of the residents here in this colony speak their ancestral language "Bahawalpuri", which is similar to Pakistani language Multani.