Drought stress leads to a significant amount of agricultural crop loss. Thus, with changing climatic conditions, it is important to develop resilience measures in agricultural systems against drought stress. Roots play a crucial role in regulating plant development under drought stress. In this review, we have summarized the studies on the role of roots and root‐mediated plant responses. We have also discussed the importance of root system architecture (RSA) and the various structural and anatomical changes that it undergoes to increase survival and productivity under drought. Various genes, transcription factors, and quantitative trait loci involved in regulating root growth and development are also discussed. A summarization of various instruments and software that can be used for high‐throughput phenotyping in the field is also provided in this review. More comprehensive studies are required to help build a detailed understanding of RSA and associated traits for breeding drought‐resilient cultivars. Core Ideas The root is the first plant organ to sense drought and responds through morphological, anatomical, and genetic changes. These changes explore and secure resources with minimal metabolic cost. Using high‐throughput and advanced phenotyping, root system architecture (RSA) can be studied comprehensively. Such a study can pave the way for strategic modifications in RSA to develop resilient crops.