A few illustrious Indians, including "Lokmānya Tilak" (or Bal Gangadhar Tilak), a prime leader in the nation's freedom movement in the British Raj days; Bharat Ratna "Maharshi" Dhondo Keshav Karve, a social reformer and educationist; and Wrangler Paranjpe i.e. Wrangler Raghunath Purushottam Paranjpe, a mathematician and educationist, were born in Ratnagiri or its vicinity.
Ratnagiri has also been featured in Amitav Ghosh's novel, 'The Glass Palace.' The Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project is located in the district.