Kung fu girl group puts fresh spin on ancient Chinese art

In beforehand of a secluded temple successful southwestern China, Duan Ruru skilfully executes a bid of chops and strikes, practising kung fu techniques she has spent a decennary mastering.

Chinese martial arts person agelong been considered a male-dominated sphere, but a cohort of Generation Z women similar Duan is challenging that presumption and generating publicity for their peculiar schoolhouse of kung fu.

"Since I was little, I've had a emotion for martial arts... I thought that girls learning martial arts was ace swaggy," Duan, 23, said.

The past Emei schoolhouse wherever she trains successful the mountains of Sichuan is thought to person historically welcomed a higher proportionality of women and girls. But it has not achieved the aforesaid level of nationalist fame arsenic different kung fu schools, specified arsenic Shaolin.

That is starting to alteration acknowledgment successful portion to Duan's nine-woman troupe, Emei Kung Fu Girls, which meshes deft swordwork with societal media savvy to assistance enactment the sect backmost connected the map.

In slick videos, the troupe performs everything from combat scenes to flips successful beforehand of the Louvre successful Paris, often backed by booming hip-hop beats.

They besides amusement disconnected their moves alongside branded beverages oregon cars, though the radical declined to remark connected whether they marque wealth from advertising.

Since their debut past April, they person amassed much than 23 cardinal views and implicit a cardinal followers connected Douyin, China's mentation of TikTok.

The artform "has a spot successful history... truthful I deliberation it's thing worthy spreading", Duan told AFP.

- Wider assemblage -

Known crossed China for its misty peaks, Emeishan successful Sichuan state has tried successful caller years to currency successful connected its taste bounty -- with mixed results.

Local martial arts sects person their origins successful past Taoist doctrine and evolved into a signifier of defence during China's predominant wars.

The value of the schools shrank arsenic weapons modernised, and the ruling Communist Party aboriginal suppressed what it viewed arsenic imaginable hotbeds of deviant thought.

But those policies person since relaxed, and successful 2008 Beijing listed Emei martial arts arsenic intangible taste heritage, opening up funds to make the craft.

Progress has been uneven, with metropolis officials admitting successful 2023 that the subject suffered from "a deficiency of designation among tourists, and dissemination is not high".

Kung fu maestro Wang Chao, a national-level typical of Emei martial arts, said the sect inactive relies heavy connected authorities money.

But the Kung Fu Girls' videos person been "very good" astatine bringing the section creation to a wider audience, helium told AFP.

"Publicity for Emei martial arts is overmuch much almighty now," helium said.

- Confidence boost -

Founding subordinate Duan, who has been grooming since she was 12 years old, said her procreation "loves being autarkic and free-spirited".

Some Emei students person been inspired to support pursuing martial arts, including Ren Nianjie, who wants to survey it astatine university.

"I privation to beryllium an athlete...  to triumph glory for the country," the 17-year-old told AFP aft whirling a woody staff.

The fashionable representation of Emei's women fighters comes mostly from best-selling novels by Hong Kong writer Louis Cha, who wrote nether the pen sanction Jin Yong.

In reality, boys inactive outnumber girls -- though possibly not arsenic heavy arsenic successful different sects.

On a Friday evening successful February, 7 girls were contiguous among a people of 17 superior schoolhouse students astatine a adjacent martial arts academy.

Parent Zhu Haiyan, 41, said her girl Guoguo had grown much assured since starting her people a twelvemonth ago.

"When girls person self-confidence, they tin beryllium little timid erstwhile they spell out," she said arsenic Guoguo practised connected a mat a fewer metres (yards) away.

Duan, from Kung Fu Girls, said she hoped the radical would animate much young girls to instrumentality up martial arts.

"They mightiness spot maine grooming and deliberation it's ace charismatic and cool, and beryllium drawn to larn it themselves," she told AFP.

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