Balashankar Kantharia was born on May 17, 1858, into a Sathodara Nagar Brahmin family in Nadiad, Bombay Presidency (now in Gujarat, India).

[2][3] He was born to Ullasram Arjunlal Kantharia, a government magistrate, and Revaba, and had one brother, Umedram, and one sister, Rukshmani.

He was a polyglot and knew Gujarati, Persian, Arabic, Sanskrit, Braj and Hindi languages as well as music and archaeology.

He managed Bharati Bhusan, Itihas Mala, Krishna Mahoday magazines.

[2] "Gujare Je Shire Tare" is his popular ghazal poetry composed in Bah’r Hazaj Saalim metre.