Sartaaj obtained an honours degree in music from Government College, Hoshiarpur. He concentrated on his musical career while completing his MPhil in Sufi music singing and later a PhD in Sufi singing (Gayan) from Panjab University, Chandigarh. He also taught music at Panjab University for six years. Sartaaj also completed a certificate course and Diploma in the Persian language. He started writing poetry and adopted his Takhallus (pen name), Sartaaj, while at college.
Sartaaj pursued a professional music career in his 20s. Before this, he has stated he was a farmer and had no interest in pursuing a career as a performer.
His big performance break was in 2008 when he got booked for a gig in Toronto, Ontario. The show’s organisers had heard him singing on YouTube and wanted him to perform for the Punjabi-Canadian audience.[5]
In 2011, Sartaaj won “Best International Act” at the Brit Asia TV Music Awards (BAMA).
On 2 May 2014, Sartaaj performed in the Royal Albert Hall. He won “Best Songwriter” again at BAMA 2017 and “Music Video of the Year” at BAMA 2018 for “Udaarian”.