Dhondo began his studies in Murud, a small coastal village in Ratnagiri district, from where he hailed, and it was here that he met his teacher and mentor Vinayak Lakshman Soman. Soman, who was also a nationalist, guided Dhondo in his studies. Soman felt that the villagers should be informed of the happenings in the country and so would make Dhondo read the newspapers aloud at the local temple every evening.

Dhondu wanted to appear for the examination that would enable him to be a teacher. He had two choices, either Mumbai or Satara. Unable to travel all the way by sea to Mumbai, he chose to trek the long route to Satara, that took four days and involved crossing the Sahayadris. When he finally reached Satara, he was not allowed to write the exam, as he was not yet 17 years old. He then wrote it the next year at Kolhapur and passed the exam, by when he was already married to Radhabhai. He then managed to secure a scholarship and continued his education in Mumbai. After his father’s demise, his brother helped him fund his studies. He also gave tuitions to earn some money and after years of struggle, finally, graduated from Elphinstone College in Mumbai in 1884.

When Karve started working, he ensured at least a part of his income was set aside for charity. Karve created a small fund which he used for the development of Murud village, setting up roads there, as well as an English High School. He worked for some time at the Elphinstone High School in Mumbai, but did not like the atmosphere there. He later joined St.Peter’s School, and he would walk to it daily. His wife Radhabai was a great source of support. Karve ensured that boys from his hometown were not deprived of education. One of the many boys who came from Murud, Raghunath Paranjpe, later served as an Indian ambassador to Australia. Radhabhai looked after those boys like her own sons, fed them well and took care of them. Unfortunately, she fell ill and her untimely death dealt a major blow to Karve. On the request of Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Karve went to Fergusson College, Pune, where he joined as a Professor of Mathematics.

Karve was aghast by the treatment meted out to widows those days. Often small girls, hardly 10-12 years old, were married off to 60-70 year old men, and when they died, they were condemned to a life of misery, with their heads shaved, doomed to live alone in a dark room. These unfortunate women were blamed for their fate, as having accumulated the sins of a previous birth. When people asked Karve to marry again, he said “I am a widower, if I marry another time, it shall be a widow only”. To which his friend’s father Balakrishna Joshi replied, “If you have decided to marry a widow only, why not it be my daughter Godubai herself?”. Godubai happened to be the sister of Karve’s closest friend Narhari Pant, and he gladly accepted the suggestion. Godubai was married to Karve, and he changed her name to Anandibai after marriage. However Karve’s act of marrying a widow was not liked by the more orthodox sections, and was the hot topic of discussion in many newspapers. When Karve, along with his wife Anandibai, visited Murud the villagers boycotted him and passed a resolution forbidding everyone from interacting with him. Karve could not even speak to his mother, brother or sister, and Bhikaji was emotionally affected by this. Karve’s mother and brother did not visit his home, even when they came to town, nor was he informed when his mother was seriously ill. The courageous act of marrying a widow came at a terrible personal cost for Karve.

In spite of society’s rejection of Karve, and it’s harsh treatment, he did not develop any bitterness or ill will towards it. He knew that such sufferings had to be borne when one set out to reform the injustice in society. Karve always felt that while society must be reformed, it should be a long, slow, process, instead of trying to push it forcibly. Karve went ahead with his mission of taking care of widows and he set up the Widow Marriage Association. It’s main aim was to provide a platform to those men who wished to marry widows and also to educate public about it. Karve did not believe in just pushing through with reforms. He felt that people also needed to be educated first. He sought to reform society, not destroy it. He wanted to improve it, not bring about further divisions. He also felt that those widows who were casted out, needed to be rehabilitated and in 1896 he set up the Ananta Balikashram Association at Pune. In 1900, this ashram was shifted to Hinge, a small village close to Pune, and many educated ladies like Parvatibhai Athavale, Kashibhai Deodhar volunteered to work there. Many young widows were educated at this ashram, and also given assistance to make them live on their own.