In 1906[6] he married Gulab Gandhi, with whom he had had five children: two daughters, Rami, and Manu; and three sons, Kantilal, Rasiklal and Shantilal.

He had four grandchildren (Anushrya, Prabodh, Neelam Solanki, and Navmalika) via Rani, two (Shanti and Pradeep) via Kantilal, and one (Urmi) via Manu.

In 1925, Harilal had lent Mahatma Gandhi's name to a Calcutta firm All India Stores.

[10] In June 1935, Mahatma Gandhi wrote a letter [11] to Harilal, accusing him of "alcohol and debauchery".

In the letters,[12] Mahatma Gandhi stated that Harilal's problems were more difficult for him to deal with than the struggle for an independent India.

[16] Harilal did not reveal to staff that he was Gandhi's son, and his family only found out about his hospitalisation after his death.

The film adaptation was released on 3 August 2007 and directed by Feroz Abbas Khan and produced by Anil Kapoor.