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Varieties

Chinese Citizens Slam Musk Online after Space Station Near-Misses

A child stands near a giant screen showing the image of the Tianhe space station on the country's Space Day at China Science and Technology Museum in Beijing, China April 24, 2021. (Reuters)
A child stands near a giant screen showing the image of the Tianhe space station on the country's Space Day at China Science and Technology Museum in Beijing, China April 24, 2021. (Reuters)
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Chinese Citizens Slam Musk Online after Space Station Near-Misses

A child stands near a giant screen showing the image of the Tianhe space station on the country's Space Day at China Science and Technology Museum in Beijing, China April 24, 2021. (Reuters)
A child stands near a giant screen showing the image of the Tianhe space station on the country's Space Day at China Science and Technology Museum in Beijing, China April 24, 2021. (Reuters)

Chinese citizens lashed out online against billionaire Tesla founder Elon Musk's space ambitions on Monday after China complained that its space station was forced to take evasive action to avoid collision with satellites launched by Musk's Starlink program.

The satellites from Starlink Internet Services, a division of Musk's SpaceX aerospace company, had two "close encounters" with the Chinese space station on July 1 and Oct. 21, according to a document submitted by China earlier this month to the UN's space agency.

"For safety reasons, the China Space Station implemented preventive collision avoidance control," China said in a document published on the website of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs.

The complaints have not been independently verified. SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In a post on China's Twitter-like Weibo microblogging platform on Monday, one user said Starlink's satellites were "just a pile of space junk", while another described them as "American space warfare weapons".

With nearly 30,000 satellites and other debris believed to be orbiting the planet, scientists have urged governments to share data to reduce the risk of catastrophic space collisions.

SpaceX alone has deployed nearly 1,900 satellites to serve its Starlink broadband network, and is planning more.

"The risks of Starlink are being gradually exposed, the whole human race will pay for their business activities," a user posting under the name Chen Haiying said on Weibo.

US space agency NASA was forced to abruptly call off a spacewalk at the end of November, citing risks posed by space debris. Musk tweeted in response that some Starlink satellite orbits had been adjusted to reduce the possibility of collisions.

China began constructing the space station in April with the launch of Tianhe, the largest of its three modules. The station is expected to be completed by the end of 2022 after four crewed missions.

Musk has become a well-known figure in China, though Tesla's electric-vehicle business has come under growing scrutiny from regulators, especially after a customer climbed on top of a Tesla car at the Shanghai auto show in April to protest against poor customer service.

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Varieties

Curtain Falls on the Romance of India's Single-screen Cinemas

Researchers estimate that India had around 14,000 single-screen halls in the 1980s. Only around 2,000 remain today. Idrees MOHAMMED / AFP
Researchers estimate that India had around 14,000 single-screen halls in the 1980s. Only around 2,000 remain today. Idrees MOHAMMED / AFP
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Curtain Falls on the Romance of India's Single-screen Cinemas

Researchers estimate that India had around 14,000 single-screen halls in the 1980s. Only around 2,000 remain today. Idrees MOHAMMED / AFP
Researchers estimate that India had around 14,000 single-screen halls in the 1980s. Only around 2,000 remain today. Idrees MOHAMMED / AFP

The demolition has begun at Bengaluru's Urvashi Cinema, once a 1,200-seat movie palace where generations of filmgoers cheered and whistled, another casualty of India's vanishing single-screen era.

"The theater came up in the 1970s... I was so happy when it opened," said Manjunath, watching as seats were ripped out and strewn outside.

Manjunath, who uses one name, recalled its glory days, when the shop he runs opposite was packed with customers buying snacks before and after shows.

"That was the rush... now I have a lot of free time," he said. "But what to do? There is barely any crowd."

The peeling facades, faded signs and cavernous auditoriums of such cinemas are remnants of a time when going to the movies was itself the main event.

"It is a completely different experience," said photographer Hemant Chaturvedi, 58, who has documented what remains during a seven-year odyssey, photographing 1,350 single-screen cinemas across 1,000 towns.

His photographs capture not only the movie houses but their ornate facades and decay -- a record of a cultural landscape disappearing as cinemas are demolished, converted into multiplexes or left to crumble.

- 'Ecosystem is fading' -

"People would be cheering, jumping on the seats, even throwing money at the screen," Chaturvedi said.

The old halls offered a collective, interactive experience, with fans applauding at the hero's entrance, clapping to romantic songs and shouting at dramatic twists.

"Now that old ecosystem is fading, and the charm is being lost," he said.

India's single-screen cinemas have been steadily squeezed by multiplexes, streaming, rising property costs and the expense of maintaining ageing buildings and equipment.

Researchers estimate that India had around 14,000 single-screen halls in the 1980s. Only around 2,000 remain today.

Many of the old halls could accommodate around 1,000 people, creating a communal atmosphere rarely found in today's multiplexes.

The decline has also changed the way Indians experience films. New halls offer air conditioning, reclining seats and food delivered to the seat.

"To me, the new cinemas have lost the charm," said Chaturvedi, a former Bollywood cinematographer who worked on hit movies during a three-decade career.

"The multiplexes are a generic, cold experience."

- 'Old times' -

Some of the old cinemas have been restored and renovated, and the single-screen experience still has its devotees.

In Bengaluru, Mukunda Cinemas still draws crowds -- even for early-morning shows before work.

Hundreds lined up before dawn for a recent 6:00 am screening of the latest release of film star Yash, who is hugely popular in India's Kannada-language cinema.

Santosh, a 47-year-old businessman who uses one name, queued with hundreds of others as crowds set off fireworks outside while waiting for the show.

"Only in the single screen theaters can they take the cinema to the next level, it increases the tradition of cinema," Santosh said, as cheers and whistles reverberated through the packed hall before the film began.

Veerain Reddy, the third generation of his family running the 50-year-old theater, said maintaining the establishment "was not an easy task".

Inflation, rising costs and "so much competition" have made business tough.

"But people who are really passionate are still trying to maintain these single-screen theaters, where people come to watch and celebrate cinema," he told AFP.

Another survivor in Mumbai -- formerly known as Bombay -- is the Regal Cinema, an Art Deco hall that opened in 1933.

"The rest of them feel very artificial, commercial, very blingy," said 23-year-old fan Vanshika. "But Bombay has little places which remind us of the old times."

Varieties

GEA Chairman Announces October 21 Launch for Riyadh Season 2026

Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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GEA Chairman Announces October 21 Launch for Riyadh Season 2026

Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Entertainment Authority (GEA) Turki Alalshikh announced that Riyadh Season 2026 will open on Wednesday, October 21, featuring a 10-week program of championships, concerts, performances, and entertainment experiences, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Saturday.

Alalshikh made the announcement in a promotional video previewing the season's sporting, entertainment, and arts events, which he said would reinforce Riyadh's standing as a destination for premier events and audiences from around the world.

The seventh edition's lineup includes world-class boxing and wrestling matches, UFC bouts, and the Six Kings Slam tennis tournament, alongside concerts, theatrical and comedy performances, and events designed for children and families.

Boulevard World returns as one of the season's principal zones, gathering global cultures and destinations in a single location, while Boulevard City opens with new content and Wonder Garden offers a range of rides and activities. Other zones and events include The Groves, the Farmers' Market, and the Ana Arabia exhibition at VIA Riyadh, with further programs spread across multiple locations in the capital.

The season runs under the theme "Big Time," drawing visitors from Saudi Arabia and abroad.

Varieties

New Road Lanes Open in Makkah to Ease Congestion, Aid Pilgrims

The expansion includes an additional 1.5-kilometer stretch on the Third Ring Road connecting the Prince Mutib intersection to the Grand Mosque intersection via the Prince Sultan intersection - SPA
The expansion includes an additional 1.5-kilometer stretch on the Third Ring Road connecting the Prince Mutib intersection to the Grand Mosque intersection via the Prince Sultan intersection - SPA
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New Road Lanes Open in Makkah to Ease Congestion, Aid Pilgrims

The expansion includes an additional 1.5-kilometer stretch on the Third Ring Road connecting the Prince Mutib intersection to the Grand Mosque intersection via the Prince Sultan intersection - SPA
The expansion includes an additional 1.5-kilometer stretch on the Third Ring Road connecting the Prince Mutib intersection to the Grand Mosque intersection via the Prince Sultan intersection - SPA

The Royal Commission for Makkah City and Holy Sites has opened traffic on several newly developed lanes along the Third Ring Road and Prince Saud Al Faisal Road, reducing travel times by more than 90%.

The expansion includes an additional 1.5-kilometer stretch on the Third Ring Road connecting the Prince Mutib intersection to the Grand Mosque intersection via the Prince Sultan intersection, SPA reported.

Traffic flow was also inaugurated on the final section of Prince Saud Al Faisal Road, linking the Prince Mohammed bin Salman axis to Abdulqadir Koshak Street through the Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz intersection.

These openings are part of integrated infrastructure projects designed to ease traffic congestion, improve road safety, and streamline access for residents, visitors, and pilgrims during the Hajj and Umrah seasons.