On a hot summer day in 2022, wildlife photographer Sharwan Patel stood quietly by a dried-up watering hole on the edge of Rajasthan’s Tal Chapar Game Reserve.
The endless earth spread out in front of him – brown, cracked, thirsty.
A herd of sorcerers hesitated around the shallow pit, their hooves sinking into the dust. The mongoose darted in and darted away when his nose touched the dirty trickle left at the bottom.
Sharwan raised his camera, but the weight of the moment felt even heavier. “That day, as I watched life die for lack of water, I made a promise to myself that I would bring back water for the wildlife in the desert,” he recalls.
What began with that promise later grew into a movement to build ponds in the arid lands of Rajasthan, transforming empty lots into oases where animals could drink, rest and thrive.
An accidental discovery
Sharvan was not always a conservationist. He started out as a wildlife photographer, chasing shots of birds of prey and deer across the semi-arid regions of Rajasthan. One such photography trip—to Tal Chapar—changed everything.
A friend, a bank manager and part-time wildlife enthusiast, took Sharwan along for an audit near the sanctuary. While his friend was looking for birds of prey in the sky, Sharwan’s gaze caught something on the ground – a newly constructed pond, locally known as haili.
Curious, he squatted down and began to measure the length and width of the pond with his bare hands. Soon the forest guard arrived. Sharvan peppered them with questions, and they explained that the reservoir was an experiment designed to provide water for wildlife during the driest months.
At first, the animals were kept away. But after a few weeks, the pond became a focal point: hares stopped to drink, mongooses flew into it, peacocks fluttered along its edge, and even wary black bucks began to visit.
said Sharvan. He returned home to the village of Melwa with images etched in his memory. For him, this pocket of water told a deeper story than any photograph.
The first pond that changed everything
In the summer, Sharvan and a small group of friends decided to build their own pond. It was modest in size, only half a foot deep, and modeled after the traditional village ponds in which he grew up. They used local soil, added cement to reduce seepage, and built an embankment to hold rainwater.
At first nothing happened. Days passed without visits. The pond stood, almost forgotten. And so one night, Sharwan’s camera traps captured a miracle: black bucks gracefully stooping to drink, flocks of birds circling overhead and nocturnal mongooses frolicking under the cover of darkness.
Excited, Sharwan filmed the activity and shared it online. The video went viral, triggering a wave of messages. Villagers, influential people and nature lovers urged him to replicate the efforts in their areas. “Come here,” they asked. “Animals die of thirst.”
What began as a photographer’s experiment turned into a movement.
When the desert spoke of thirst
Sharwan’s work soon took him beyond Tal Chapar. In the villages of the desert, he witnessed heart-rending scenes. Birds lay near dry holes, mongooses collapsed from the heat, and herds of deer circled the empty aquariums in search of water.
One of the most painful images showed a deer standing on the edge of a shallow hole unable to drink because the water had sunk too deep.
He understood that there were two forces at work here. First, there was a shortage of natural water in the desert of Rajasthan. Second, the pollution of the water that is left behind is contaminated with chemicals from agriculture and is not suitable for animals to drink.
It was here that Sharvan turned to the revival of an old tradition. traditionally, Hylis were shallow village ponds constructed of earth and natural clay to hold monsoon water. Sharvan adapted this practice with small innovations – a cement pad to minimize seepage and ensure the water stayed cool longer, then covering it with soil to create a natural base.
The cost was modest, around Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000 for materials and labour, but the effect was huge. In places where there was no water for many kilometers, these ponds became a lifeline for animals.
The cost of maintaining ponds
Building the ponds was only half the battle. Keeping them topped up through the sweltering Rajasthani summer proved even more difficult.
From March to July, the temperature soared and the natural water disappeared. Tankers became the only lifeline. In April, recalls Sharvan, one tank cost about 1,000 rupees. By June, the price had doubled to Rs 2,000 and the nearest government reservoir was 20–25 kilometers away. The logistics were difficult and expensive, but without these tankers the ponds would have dried up and the animals would have been left with nothing again.
Smallest contributions, big changes
To maintain the ponds, Sharwan and his team launched a simple but powerful campaign: asking people to donate just Re 1 a day. The idea, suggested by his friend Yashavardhan Sharma, was that when people invest financially, they also stay emotionally invested.
They started a WhatsApp group called ‘One Rupee a Day for Wildlife Conservation’. Soon, support began to flow in, and the idea took shape into a larger movement. Nearly 1,000 members joined, each contributing Rs 365 per year.
“These small but consistent contributions have funded habitat restoration, the protection of endangered species, and even improved local farming practices,” explains Yashavardhan, who works as secretary of Rajasthan’s INTACH (Indian National Endowment for Art and Cultural Heritage) environmental group. “It helped us raise funds to establish plantations, fill in watering holes and remove invasive species.”
Social media also played a key role. Sharwan’s Instagram page, Thar Desert Photography, has raised awareness and brought more people to the cause.
“True conservation is not about large sums of money, but about small, consistent efforts,” says Yashavardhan. “When communities come together, even one rupee a day can revive history and heal nature.”
But along with support came obstacles. Sometimes shepherds drove goats into ponds, muddied the water and drove away wild deer. But Sharvan insisted. “When a peacock dances by the pond or a vulture circles for a drink,” he says, “every rupee seems worth it.”
To date, Sharvan has directly participated in the construction of more than 30 ponds. His videos and recommendations have also inspired communities in Bikaner, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer to build more than 100 ponds of their own.
When the desert turned into an oasis
The results quickly spoke for themselves. Camera traps showed mongooses arriving in flocks, peacocks preening their feathers and migratory birds returning to rest. Sharvan even recorded vultures perched solemnly around the ponds, turning the desert into what looked like an oasis.
The most striking changes occurred among black bass, whose numbers increased in areas near water bodies. Instead of roaming the villages where they risked conflict, they now stayed closer to water-rich areas.
“Wildlife comes where there’s water,” Sharvan explains simply. “It’s the heart of every habitat.”
His images capturing this revival carried the message further. The photographs and short films he created began to spread widely, and soon Rajasthan Tourism showcased his work, presenting Tala Chapar as a place where photography and conservation came together.
The next chapter is about the wildlife of Rajasthan
For Sharvan, the mission does not end at the ponds. He dreams of having a mini-forest in every village arantraditional sacred communal land. “If the villagers plant native trees and protect small water bodies, species such as chinkara, foxtail and blackbuck will flourish naturally,” he says.
He believes that such efforts can also support eco-tourism. Homestays, local food and wildlife safaris could provide livelihoods for villages like Melwa, his own home. “Kids don’t have to travel miles to see wildlife. They have to grow up around wildlife.”
When asked if he considers himself a conservationist, Sharvan pauses. “I never thought I would do it,” he admits. “It started with one pond, then another. Now it’s like targeted accountability.”
His mission is clear: to support water where animals need it most. So, in the heart of the arid regions of Rajasthan, Sharvan is known as the man who brought ponds to a thirsty land, ensuring that in the middle of the desert life still has a chance to drink and dance.
All images courtesy of Sharvan Patel, Thar Desert Photography.
