In the Indian subcontinent

Hyderabadi vegetable biryani served in Tampa, U.S.

Biryani of Lahore
There are many types of biryani, whose names are often based on their region of origin. For example, Sindhi biryani developed in the Sindh region of what is now Pakistan, and Hyderabadi biryani developed in the city of Hyderabad in South India.

Some have taken the name of the shop that sells it, for example: Haji Biriyani, Haji Nanna Biriyani in Old Dhaka, Fakhruddin Biriyani in Dhaka, Students biryani in Karachi, Lucky biryani in Bandra, Mumbai and Baghdadi biryani in Colaba, Mumbai. Biryanis are often specific to the Muslim communities where they originate; they are usually the defining dishes of those communities.

Ambur/Vaniyambadi biryani
Ambur/Vaniyambadi biryani is a variety cooked in the neighboring towns of Ambur and Vaniyambadi in the Tirupattur district of the northeastern part of Tamil Nadu, which has a high Muslim population. It was introduced by the Nawabs of Arcot who once ruled the area. It is typically made with jeera samba rice.

The Ambur/Vaniyambadi biryani is accompanied by dhalcha, a sour brinjal curry, and pachadi or raitha (sliced onions mixed with plain yogurt, tomato, chilies, and salt). It has a distinctive aroma and is considered light on the stomach. The usage of spice is moderate and curd is used as a gravy base. It also has a higher ratio of meat to rice. Ambur-style biriyani is popular as street food all across South India.

Beef/Kalyani biryani

Beef biryani
Beef biryani, as the name implies, uses beef as the meat. In Hyderabad, it is famous as Kalyani biryani, in which buffalo or cow meat is used. This meal was started after the Kalyani Nawabs of Bidar came to Hyderabad sometime in the 18th century. The Kalyani biryani is made with small cubes of beef, regular spices, onions, and many tomatoes. It has a distinct tomato, jeera and dhania flavour. In Kerala, beef biryani is well known. The Bhatkali biryani is a special variant where the main ingredient is onion. Its variations include beef, goat, chicken, titar, egg, fish, crab, prawn, and vegetable biryani.

Bhatkali/Navayathi biryani
This is an integral part of the Navayath cuisine and a specialty of Bhatkal, a coastal town in Karnataka. Its origins are traced to the Persian traders who left behind not only biryani but a variation of kababs and Indian breads. In Bhatkali biryani, the meat is cooked in an onion and green chili-based masala and layered with fragrant rice. It has a unique spicy and heady flavour, and the rice is overwhelmingly white with mild streaks of orange.

Though similar to those in Thalassery, this biryani differs with lingering after-notes of mashed onions laced with garlic. A few chilies and spices littered with curry leaves lends a unique flavour to Bhatkal biryani. No oil is used.

Bohri biryani
Bohri biryani, prepared by the Bohris is flavoured with lots of tomatoes. It is popular in Karachi.

Chettinad biryani
Chettinad biryani is famous in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is made of jeeraka samba rice, and smells of spices and ghee. It is best taken with nenju elumbu kuzhambu, a spicy and tangy goat meat gravy. The podi kozhi is usually topped with fried onions and curry leaves.

Degh Biryani
Degh Biryani especially served in Parbhani District and surroundings
Degh Ki biryani/Akhni Biryani of Parbhani
Degh ki biryani is a typical biryani made from small cubes of beef or mutton. This biryani is famous in Parbhani and generally served at weddings.

The meat is flavoured with ginger, garlic, red chili, cumin, garam masala, fried onion and curd. This biryani is also known as kachay gosht ki biryani or dum biryani, where the meat is marinated and cooked along with short grain and fine rice. It is left on a slow fire or dum for a fragrant and aromatic flavour.

Delhi biryani
The Delhi version of biryani developed a unique local flavour as the Mughal kings shifted their political capital to the North Indian city of Delhi. Until the 1950s, most people cooked biryani in their home and rarely ate at eateries outside of their homes. Hence, restaurants primarily catered to travellers and merchants. Any region that saw more of these two classes of people nurtured more restaurants, and thus their own versions of biryani. This is the reason why most shops that sold biryani in Delhi, tended to be near mosques such as Jama Masjid (for travellers) or traditional shopping districts (such as Chandni Chowk).

Each part of Delhi has its own style of biryani, often based on its original purpose, thus giving rise to Nizamuddin biryani, Shahjahanabad biryani, etc. Nizamuddin biryani usually had little expensive meat and spices as it was primarily meant to be made in bulk for offering at the Nizamuddin Dargah shrine and thereafter to be distributed to devotees. A non-dum biryani, using many green chillies, popularized by the Babu Shahi Bawarchi shops located outside the National Sports Club in Delhi is informally called Babu Shahi biryani. Another version of Delhi biryani uses achaar (pickles) and is called achaari biryani.

Dhakaiya biryani

Dhakaiya biriyani
The city of Dhaka in Bangladesh is known for selling Chevon Biryani, a dish made with highly seasoned rice and goat meat. The recipe includes: highly seasoned rice, goat meat, mustard oil, garlic, onion, black pepper, saffron, clove, cardamom, cinnamon, salt, lemon, doi, peanuts, cream, raisins and a small amount of cheese (either from cows or buffalo). Haji biryani is a favourite among Bangladeshis living abroad. A recipe was handed down by the founder of one Dhaka restaurant to the next generation. Haji Mohammad Shahed claimed, "I have never changed anything, not even the amount of salt".

Dhakaiya Kacchi Biryani is accompanied by borhani, a salted mint drink made of yogurt, coriander, mint and salt.

Dindigul biryani
The Dindigul town of Tamil Nadu is noted for its biryani, which uses a little curd and lemon juice for a tangy taste.

Donne biryani
Military hotels of Bangalore in Karnataka are known for selling Biryani served in dried plantain pouches called Donne available in .It is made typically made from jeera samba rice, yogurt with lot of common mint and coriander leaves, 

Hyderabadi biryani
Main article: Hyderabadi biryani

Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani
Hyderabadi biryani is India’s most famous biryani; some say biryani is synonymous with Hyderabad. The crown dish of Hyderabadi Cuisine, Hyderabadi biryani developed under the rule of Asaf Jah I, who was first appointed as the governor of Deccan by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. It is made with basmati rice, spices and goat meat. Popular variations use chicken instead of goat meat. There are various forms of Hyderabadi biryani, such as kachay gosht ki biryani or dum biryani, where goat meat is marinated and cooked along with the rice. It is left on a slow fire or dum for a fragrant and aromatic flavour.

Memoni/Kutchi biryani
Memoni biryani is an extremely spicy variety developed by the Memons of Gujarat-Sindh region in India and Pakistan. It is made with mutton, dahi, fried onions, and potatoes, and fewer tomatoes compared to Sindhi biryani.

Kalyani biryani
Kalyani biryani is a typical biryani from the former state of Hyderabad Deccan. Also known as the "poor man's" Hyderabadi biryani, Kalyani biryani is always made from small cubes of buffalo meat.

The meat is flavoured with ginger, garlic, turmeric, red chili, cumin, coriander powder, and much onion and tomato. It is first cooked as a thick curry and then cooked along with rice. Then given dum (the Indian method of steaming in a covered pot).

Kalyani biryani is supposed to have originated in Bidar during the reign of the Kalyani Nawabs, who migrated to Hyderabad after one of the Nawabs, Ghazanfur Jang married into the Asaf Jahi family uniting their realms. Kalyani biryani was served by the Kalyani Nawabs to all of their subjects who came from Bidar to Hyderabad and stayed or visited their devdi or noble mansion.

Kolkata biryani

Kolkata biryani
Calcutta or Kolkata biryani evolved from the Lucknow style, when Awadh's last Nawab Wajid Ali Shah was exiled in 1856 to the Kolkata suburb of Metiabruz. Shah brought his personal chef with him. The Kolkata biriyani is characterized by the unique presence of potato in it, along with meat and egg ('dim' in Bengali). It is said that the Nawab, having is lost his kingdom, could not afford meat, so his chefs tried to compensate by adding potatoes. But serious historians have rejected this as a myth. When Wajid Ali Shah arrived in Kolkata, the potato was an exotic vegetable in India and the former Nawab of Awadh, being a connoisseur of great food encouraged their chefs to try new ingredients in the dish. The Kolkata biryani is much lighter on spices but high on flavours.

Rawther biryani
This type of biryani is popular in the Palakkad and Coimbatore regions. This was most commonly prepared by Rawther families in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. This type of biryani is cooked in a different style. Goat meat is most commonly used and it is entirely different from Malabar biryani.Sindhi biryani

Sindhi biryani
The exotic and aromatic Sindhi biryani is known in Pakistan for its spicy taste, fragrant rice, and delicate meat. Sindhi biryani is a beloved staple in food menus of Pakistani and Sindhi cuisine. Sindhi biryani is prepared with meat and a mixture of basmati rice, vegetables, and various spices.

Sri Lankan biryani

Sri Lankan chicken biryani
Biryani was brought into Sri Lanka by the South Indian Muslims who were trading in the Northern part of Sri Lanka and in Colombo in the early 1900s.In Sri Lanka, it is Buryani, a colloquial word which generated from Buhari Biryani. In many cases, Sri Lankan biryani is much spicier than most Indian varieties. Side dishes may include acchar, Malay pickle, cashew curry and mint sambol.Thalassery biryani
Main article: Thalassery cuisine

Thalassery biryani
Thalassery biryani is the variation of biryani found in the Indian state of Kerala. It is one of the many dishes of the Malabar Muslim community, and very popular.

The ingredients are chicken, spices and the specialty is the choice of rice called khyma. Khyma rice is generally mixed with ghee. Although a large number of spices such as mace, cashew nuts, sultana raisins, fennel-cumin seeds, tomato, onion, ginger, garlic, shallot, cloves and cinnamon are used, there is only a small amount of chili (or chili powder) used in its preparation.

A pakki biryani, the Thalassery biryani uses a small-grained thin (not round) fragrant variety of rice known as khyma or jeerakasala. The dum method of preparation (sealing the lid with dough  or cloth and placing red-hot charcoal above the lid) is applied here to avoid scorched rice.
list the different types of biryani
1. Ambur/Vaniyambadi biryani
2. Beef/Kalyani Biryani
3. Bhatkali/Navayathi biryani
4. Bohri Biryani
5. Chettinad Biryani
6. Degh Ki biryani
7. Delhi biryani
8. Dhakaiya biryani
9. Dindigul biryani
10. Donne biryani
11. Hyderabadi biryani
12. Memoni/Kutchi biryani
13. Kolkata biryani
14. Rawther biryani
15. Sindhi biryani
16. Sri Lankan biryani
17. Thalassery biryani