The appellation Maharshi, which the Indian public often assigned to Karve, means "great sage".

He belonged to a lower middle-class family and his father's name was Keshav Bapunna Karve.

Contextually it means, under the cover of Himalaya) by Vasant Kanetkar, published in 1972, is loosely based on the life of Karve.

The Story of Dr. Karve is a 1958 documentary film directed by Neil Gokhale and Ram Gabale.

[7] Taluka Dapoli, a research based initiative, made a documentary on life of Maharshi Dhondo Keshav Karve in 2017.