74-Year-Old Turns 2,700+ Wedding Cards Into Sparrow Nests

Most people toss wedding invitations in the trash, but 74-year-old Ashok Tevani saw something different: a chance to save India's vanishing sparrows.

After 38 years at the Bank of India, Tevani faced retirement with a simple question: what now? The answer came in March 2014 when he read a children's magazine article about declining sparrow populations. The solution suggested was beautifully simple: if every household placed a birdhouse outside, it could give sparrows safe places to nest.

Tevani didn't just read the article and move on. He grabbed discarded wedding cards, chocolate boxes, and cardboard packaging, and got to work.

Each nest takes him five to six hours to craft. He cuts, folds, and shapes the materials with careful precision, ensuring birds feel safe enough to actually use them. "Birds inspect the nest first," he explains. "Only when they feel secure do they come back and bring their chicks."

Over the past decade, he's built more than 2,725 nests. He now makes 25 to 26 every month, selling each one for just 40 rupees (less than 50 cents) to barely cover materials. "I'm not doing this for money; it has now become my passion," he says.

To keep materials flowing, Tevani placed a collection box outside his home in Nagpur where neighbors drop off unused wedding cards. What most households throw away becomes tiny, colorful sanctuaries for birds struggling to survive in rapidly changing cities.

The Ripple Effect

Tevani's mission is spreading beyond his workshop. He regularly visits schools, teaching children how simple materials can become bird homes. After one workshop with sixth and seventh graders, their teacher called him the next day with exciting news: the students had gone home and made beautiful nests of their own.

"If two out of 100 children get inspired to make their own nest, that would be wonderful," Tevani says. This year, he's partnering with local NGO Gramayan to reach 20 schools in Nagpur before March 20, sharing both nests and awareness about sparrow conservation.

His vision extends to city planning too. Tevani believes new buildings could include dedicated bird spaces in balconies, giving sparrows permanent homes. "If even half the homes install nests, birds will come back," he says.

For now, the man neighbors call "Tevani Kaka" continues his quiet routine at his small table, surrounded by colorful cards and cardboard, patiently building tiny homes that might just bring sparrows back to India's cities.