A colourful mess equals jigri dosti

Friends Priya Rupani and Kavya Chaturvedi drench the plastic bear in different colours using ‘The Swirling Technique’ taught by the instructor. Pics/Kirti Surve Parade

Let's get pani puri today?"
"No yaar, it's not safe in this weather."
"How about go-karting tomorrow?"
"Mad or what? Who will travel in this rain?"

You'd think that best friends meeting after a year of attending universities in two different cities would try their hardest to make up for every moment spent apart. However, the stubborn monsoon of Mumbai made it practically impossible for me to see mine. That was until we came across the trending "Teddy Bear Fluid Art" workshop being held by Creative Jack India at Artstation in Khar West. It wasn't outdoors nor was it too far - it was practically meant for us to attend.

The very next day my friend, Kavya, and I found ourselves seated inside a vibrant room beautifully decorated with paintings on every wall and craft pieces occupying the shelves. Our teacher, Shraddha Tirmali, who had been learning art since the past 10 years, placed a plastic teddy bear in front of us along with cups filled with blue, pink, yellow and white paint before starting the class. The performance anxiety in me was quickly replaced with a sense of excitement as she started to pour a combination of colours onto a circular piece of cardboard. "See, fluid art is usually done on a flat surface," she explained, "but, today we're doing something new and using a teddy bear to create 3D fluid art." The 3D figure of choice was a bear since it's easily recognisable by all age groups.

This type of art style originated in the 1950s. The flowing paint doesn't require the use of a brush or any other art equipment, and the effect it creates was historically known as "accidental painting". Tirmali told us how this type of art acts as a catalyst to "relax our mind".

Since my friend and I decided to do it in a pair, one of us was told to hold a plastic cup at a 45-degree angle, while the other had to pour contrasting colours into it, creating a mesmerizing pool of paint. Then, Tirmali told us we're following "The Swirling Technique", where we had to continuously turn the cup in round and round until every part of the bear was drenched in colours. We took turns doing this and the next 30 minutes were filled with laughter and friendly banter about the teddy being too blue or looking bald from behind. The comforting attitude of the instructor and the tunes of our favourite Bollywood songs set the perfect tone for an unforgettable experience.

Even though my friend's hair had streaks of red paint and my pink t-shirt had patches of dark blue, we left the workshop with a purple teddy bear and hearts full of a new core memory.

Where: Artstation, Khar
Contact: Creative Jack India
Price: Rs 2,200 per person (includes all raw materials)