A number of Japanese fitness centers have decided to go Hawaiian and offer courses on hula dancing, fanned by growing popularity brought about by the box-office success of the film "Hula Girl."
Tipness Ltd. offers hula lessons at its 33 fitness clubs. The number of people taking lessons totaled about 830 in 2004 but jumped to about 2,200 last year. It expects the number to rise further this year.
The film, based on a friendship between a hula teacher and young women in a former coal-mining town in Fukushima Prefecture, was released last year and became a hit.