Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is one of the most important staple food crop cultivated in South East Asia fulfilling the dietary needs of the people. This crop is being influenced by a variety of abiotic and biotic factors contributing to a change in its physiology, biochemistry as well as its genetics. Abiotic factors including oxides of nitrogen, carbon and an array of volatile organic compounds react with UV radiation leading to the generation of ozone in the troposphere. The ozone influence on rice has caused a lot of concern among the rice scientists and has necessitated the development of strategies to combat the problem. Molecular biology approaches including marker assisted selection involving QTLs linked to genes conferring tolerance to ozone stress have been identified due to the recent breakthroughs in rice genomics. Many medium-effect loci instead of single large-effect loci are supposed to govern the trait. The present review is an approach to provide information on the physiological, biochemical and molecular responses of rice towards elevated ozone tolerance and also reflect the available strategies to minimize the effect.