M.R. Sreenivasulu-Pen Refill Landmarks-India-Sydney Harbor Bridge-10Photo via M.R. Sreenivasulu

This may not be the way Bangalore software professional M.R. Sreenivasulu intended to become famous, but his miniature architectural models, constructed from thousands of plastic pen refills, have become so famous, his version of the Taj Mahal made it to the India Book of Records for “A Structure by Most Used Pen Refills” in 2012. In fact, he’s been building model landmarks since 2007, collecting pen refills as part of a “Say No to Plastic” campaign he launched. In total, he’s used eight kilograms of pen refills to build the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben, Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Space Needle from Seattle, Sydney Harbor Bridge, Charminar in India, and the Gateway of India.


M.R. Sreenivasulu-Pen Refill Landmarks-India-Sydney Harbor Bridge-2Photo via M.R. Sreenivasulu

The Eiffel Tower was his first effort, consisting of 200 refills and taking over eight months to build. The Taj Mahal has 700 refills. Sreenivas’ work has recently returned to the spotlight after an appearance at 103rd Indian Science Congress. The Say No to Plastic program collects pen refills at universities and schools across India encouraging consumers to follow the “3Rs’s Principle: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.”

M.R. Sreenivasulu-Pen Refill Landmarks-India-Sydney Harbor Bridge-5Photo via M.R. Sreenivasulu

M.R. Sreenivasulu-Pen Refill Landmarks-India-Sydney Harbor Bridge-6Photo via M.R. Sreenivasulu

M.R. Sreenivasulu-Pen Refill Landmarks-India-Sydney Harbor Bridge-4Photo via M.R. Sreenivasulu

M.R. Sreenivasulu-Pen Refill Landmarks-India-Sydney Harbor Bridge-8Photo via M.R. Sreenivasulu

M.R. Sreenivasulu-Pen Refill Landmarks-India-Sydney Harbor Bridge-7Photo via M.R. Sreenivasulu

M.R. Sreenivasulu-Pen Refill Landmarks-India-Sydney Harbor BridgePhoto via M.R. Sreenivasulu

Sreenivasulu hopes to build “all the famous landmarks in the world,” reports the Deecan Herald in Januar 2016, following the congress.

Next, check out 10 stunning interior landmarks of New York City.