Dhondo Keshav Karve

Dhondo Keshav Karve (18 April 1858 – 9 November 1962), popularly known as Maharshi Karve, was a social reformer in India in the field of women's welfare He advocated widow remarriage and he himself married a widow. In his honour, Queen's Road in Mumbai (Bombay) was renamed to Maharshi Karve Road. Karve was a pioneer in promoting widows' education.[1] The Government of India awarded him with the highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna, in 1958, the year of his 100th birthday.

Dhondo Keshav Karve
Karve on a 1958 stamp of India
Born(1858-04-18)18 April 1858
Sheravali, Dapoli, Bombay Presidency, British India
Died9 November 1962(1962-11-09) (aged 104)
Pune, Maharashtra, India
Occupation
  • Professor
  • Activist
  • Writer
  • Social Worker
Spouse(s)Radhabai and Godubai
ChildrenRaghunath Karve, Shankar Karve, Dinkar Karve, Bhaskar Karve

The appellation Maharshi, which the Indian public often assigned to Karve, means "a great sage". He was also sometimes affectionately called "Annā Karve"; in the Marathi-speaking community to which Karve belonged, the appellation "Annā" is often used to address either one's father or an elder brother. He was the first living Indian to appear on a postal stamp of India.

Career as a college professor

During 1891–1914, Karve taught mathematics at Fergusson College in Pune, Maharashtra.[2]

Autobiographical works

Karve wrote two autobiographical works: Ātmawrutta (1928) in Marathi, and Looking Back (1936) in English.

The Marathi play Himalayachi Saavli (The Shadow of the Himalayas) by Vasant Kanetkar, published in 1972, is loosely based on the life of Karve. The character of Nanasaheb Bhanu is a composite character based on Karve and other Marathi social reformers of the late 19th and early 20th century. The play itself depicts the tension between Bhanu/Karve's public life as a social reformer and his family life due to the social backlash and economic hardships his children and wife had to endure.

The 2001 film Dhyaas Parva by Amol Palekar, based on the life of Karve's son Raghunath, also depicts the Karve family, and their social reformation projects. Taluka Dapoli, a research based initiative, made a documentary on life of Maharshi Dhondo Keshav Karve in 2017.[3]

Awards and honours

See also

References
  1. Remembering Maharshi Karve, the man who set up India's first university for women India Today. 18 April 2016.
  2. "Fergusson College Department of Mathematics web page". Archived from the original on 19 June 2006. Retrieved 11 August 2006.
  3. "Maharshi Dhondo Keshav Karve | Taluka Dapoli". www.talukadapoli.com. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
  4. "Padma Awards Directory (1954–2007)" (PDF). Ministry of Home Affairs. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 April 2009. Retrieved 26 November 2010.
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