When the Mk 37 was developed and really until the mid-1960's, there wasn't much in the Soviet Navy that warranted a heavy torpedo. The Soviets needed something to sink US/UK carriers, battleships, and heavy cruisers. The Soviet navy was mostly frigates, smallish destroyers, and some leftovers from WW2.
That starts to change in the '60s when modern, larger destroyers and cruisers start to show up in the Soviet navy, as well as the beginning of aircraft/helicopter carriers. Those and larger/faster submarines were what prompted the development of the more capable Mk37s and the Mk48.
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