While it has its roots in Colombia in the early 2000s, Zumba has expanded to include Bollywood, hip-hop, swing and ballroom dance influences. Together they celebrate birthdays, mourn deaths and hang out on weekends with their partners – they’ve even been on a girls’ trip to Queensland.įelipe has been teaching Zumba for nine years, and has noticed the changing face of the dance regime. Now the regulars have become a tight-knit group. None of the members had known each other outside of the dancefloor. Over the past four years, this army of aunties has come together by chance. And she’s adamant Zumba is not dirty dancing – rather, all the joyous hip-shaking and twerking is how dancing should be. Speaking in a combination of Cantonese and Mandarin she says, with a laugh, she’s often stuck on the first and second steps, while the class has already moved on to the third step. “It’s my passion.”ĭiem, a 66-year-old Vietnamese-Chinese woman, is less focused on how sexy the moves may be and more focused on nailing the routine. “It motivates me a lot and gives me more energy,” she says, adding she’s “a lot happier” and has made many friends. She’s been going to Zumba for more than a decade, and is undergoing a course to become an instructor. “Way back then, we don’t dance,” she says.

Photograph: Rowena Meadows/The GuardianĪnother class member, Jenny, 52, agrees. View image in fullscreen ‘It gives us confidence’: regular Zumba-goer Thida, 50, outside Crunch Fitness in Springvale, Melbourne.

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