colombian superstar Shakira Gave a free concert on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday night, an event the city’s mayor said attracted 2 million people to one of the world’s most iconic waterfronts.Similar shows followed the performance mother of jesus in 2024 and Lady Gaga Last year, which was attended by huge crowds and danced on the vast sand. For Shakira, it was part of her “Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran” or “Women No Longer Cry” world tour named after her 2024 album.

Shakira says, ‘Life is magical’

Shakira’s set began around 11 p.m., more than an hour later than scheduled, with fans screaming in excitement and applause as skywriting drones flew across the sky and chanted “I love you Brazil” in Portuguese.The megastar spoke fondly about coming to Brazil for the first time nearly three decades ago.“When I was 18, I came here with the dream of singing for you,” Shakira told the crowd shortly after taking the stage. “And now look at this. Life is magical.”The much-loved pop star sang fan favorites like “Hips Don’t Lie,” “La Tortura” and “La Bicicleta.” She concluded with “BZRP Music Sessions #53/66”, following her separation from Spanish football player Gerard Pique.She also took time to celebrate the resilience of women during the show. She said, “We women, every time we fall, we get up a little wiser.”

One of the first places where Shakira became successful

Rio Mayor Eduardo Cavaliere said on Twitter that 2 million people attended the demonstration. “The She-Wolf makes history in Rio,” he posted, referring to Shakira’s 2009 hit.When Shakira first performed in Brazil in the 1990s, she struck an amazing connection with the Brazilian public, according to Felipe Maia, an ethnomusicologist who earned a doctoral degree in popular music and digital technologies at the University of Paris Nanterre.That success in Brazil “has a lot to do with the fact that she comes from Colombia, a country that has many similarities in culture with Brazil,” Maia said, adding that Saturday’s performance “reflects the long-standing relationship she has had with Brazil.”Shakira’s performance was good, says Helem Souza da Silva on his way home after Saturday’s show bad bunnyThe concerts in São Paulo in February helped strengthen Brazil’s Latino identity.He said, “These artists are making it clear that Brazil, Puerto Rico, Colombia and other countries are part of Latin America. And America is not the United States.”Crowds started gathering on the beach from Saturday morning to find a good spot for the show. Street vendors sold sweet corn and other Brazilian snacks, bottled water and the popular Brazilian cocktail Caipirinhas, but also toilet paper, deodorant and even sand bags so that concertgoers could get a better view of the stage set up in front of the Copacabana Palace, a historic luxury hotel.Street vendor Simone Paula da Cunha arrived at the beach on Friday evening, hoping to sell all the beer and water bottles she purchased before the show and make about $100 in total.

An effort to boost the city’s economy after Carnival

The free concerts are part of City Hall’s effort to boost economic activity after Carnival and New Year’s Eve festivities and before the month-long St. John’s Day celebrations in June.According to a study by City Hall and RioTour, the municipality’s tourism company, Shakira’s performance could generate approximately 777 million reais (about US$155 million), thanks to the influx of tourists and cash spent in restaurants, hotels and shops.More tourists visited Rio in the month of May in the show years – 2024 and 2025 – than in 2023, according to City Hall data. In 2024, on May 1, just before the concerts, the increase compared to the previous year was 34.2%. There is an increase of 90.5% in 2025 compared to 2023.Ahead of Shakira’s performance, Airbnb said in an April 22 statement that it was seeing an increase in the number of guests coming from various parts of Brazil, Latin America and even European capitals like Paris and London.Wanderson Andrade, a 30-year-old architect, said he flew in from the central Brazilian city of Guiana on Saturday specifically for the show and planned to fly back the next day.“I tried to get tickets to see her in Brazil last year but I didn’t succeed,” said Andrade, whose first tattoo is a wolf in Shakira’s honor. “Today a dream has come true.”

Lucknow: Two teenagers trapped above an overhead water tank in Siddharthnagar district were rescued Indian Air Force A fatal accident occurred about 15 hours after helicopter stairs collapsed on Sunday morning.The sequence of events began on Saturday afternoon in Belasad Tappa Tharauli village of Navgarh tehsil near Kanshiram Awas Colony, where five children allegedly climbed onto a disused and dilapidated water tank to record a video.Suddenly, the stairs of the structure collapsed, causing three of them to fall. Siddharth, 13, died on the spot, while two others, 14-year-old Golu and 11-year-old Sunny, were injured and admitted to Madhav Prasad Tripathi Medical College.Two other teenagers, 17-year-old Pawan and 17-year-old Kallu, were left stranded on top of the tank after the ladder collapsed. The structure, built for domestic water supply, was reportedly unused for many years due to its poor condition.After the incident, Chief Minister… Yogi Adityanath Took cognizance and directed officials to ensure safe and prompt rescue. The district administration, police and disaster response teams reached the spot and tried to bring down the trapped teenagers.However, the height of the tank, broken stairs and waterlogging of the surrounding area – which made the ground boggy and unsuitable for heavy machinery – hampered rescue efforts. A hydraulic ladder vehicle was also brought from Gorakhpur, but efforts continued throughout the night but without success.As ground efforts failed, District Magistrate Shivasharanappa GN sought assistance from the Indian Air Force through the State Relief Commissioner’s office.The DM said, “After road access failed due to marshy ground and bad weather conditions, we activated an alternative plan and coordinated through the Chief Minister’s Office and secured the Indian Air Force helicopter from Gorakhpur. The rescue operation was successfully conducted around 5.30 am and both the boys were airlifted safely.”“During the 16-hour operation, we used drones to provide water and snacks to the stranded children. I thank the CM for his timely coordination, who made the helicopter available. The children are healthy and had gone for routine medical checkup before returning home.”He said that due to difficult terrain and poor road access, rescue operations for stranded children require coordination between the fire department and the Indian Air Force.Following the request an IAF Mi-17 V5 helicopter was deployed from Central Air Command, Prayagraj. The helicopter reached the spot on Sunday morning and conducted an air rescue operation at around 5.15 am and brought down the two trapped teenagers safely.“On the request of State Government officials, an IAF Mi 17 V5 of Central Air Command (CAC) was deployed to rescue two stranded children above a water tank in Siddharth Nagar, Uttar Pradesh. The children were stranded at night as the ladder of the water tank was damaged,” CAC posted on Twitter.The police have sent the body of the deceased child for post-mortem.

Galaxy’s Mission Vision OptoSAR satellite was integrated inside the payload fairing ahead of Sunday’s launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, a milestone in all-season Earth observation.

New Delhi: Indian space-tech startup GalaxyEye on Sunday announced the launch of Drishti – an India-made satellite that combines radar and optical sensors in real time to provide high-resolution images of the same location at the same time regardless of weather conditions.Congratulating the entire team of GalaxyI, PM Narendra Modi said in a post on Twitter, “Mission VISION by GalaxyI is a major achievement in our space journey. The successful launch of the world’s first OptoSAR satellite and the largest privately built satellite in India is a testament to the passion for innovation and nation-building of our youth.” ISROSupporting the mission, he also congratulated the team. In a post on X, ISRO said, “A significant milestone in India’s space journey, the world’s first OptoSAR satellite and India’s largest privately built satellite is advancing all-weather Earth observation capabilities.”The Bengaluru-based startup said its 190-kilogram spacecraft, the “world’s first OptoSAR satellite”, was launched into orbit on SpaceX’s Falcon-9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, US. It was one of 45 payloads on the CAS500-2 mission. The mission has been widely seen as a breakthrough for India’s growing private space sector, with the satellite designed to provide imaging of the Earth in all weather, day and night, by a combination of optical and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) technologies.

In a statement, GalaxyEye Founder and CEO Suyyash Singh said, “With the satellite (Mission Drishti) now successfully placed in orbit, our immediate focus is on completing its commissioning. As we move through this phase, we are already seeing strong global interest in the differentiated datasets enabled by our OptoSAR payload.”GalaxyEye, founded in 2021 by IIT Madras alumni, has emerged as a major player in India’s new space economy, with the mission vision seen as a validation of its indigenous OptoSAR technology and commercial Earth observation capabilities.Space experts said the success of Mission Drishti reflects India’s evolving space ecosystem, where private startups are increasingly working with ISRO, space regulator Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Center (IN-SPACE) and their commercial arm NewSpace India Ltd (NSIL). On behalf of the space industry, Lieutenant General AK Bhatt (Retd), Director General, Indian Space Association (ISPA), said, “The successful launch of the first satellite of Galaxy under Mission Drishti, which is the largest satellite ever built by a private Indian company, marks a significant shift in India’s approach to Earth observation. It serves as a definitive proof-of-concept for India’s private space sector reforms and signals the transition from small-scale testing to sovereign, all-weather monitoring capabilities critical for national security and disaster response.“With this launch, India’s private space sector has taken another major step towards global competitiveness, as Mission Drishti opens up new possibilities for defence, disaster management, agriculture and infrastructure monitoring through advanced satellite imaging.

New Delhi: Counting of votes for the 140-member assembly will take place in Kerala on May 4, the results of which are expected to determine whether the CPM-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) can retain power for the third consecutive term or the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) can reclaim the state after a decade in opposition. The election has also drawn attention to the BJP’s effort to deepen its presence in select constituencies following recent gains in parliamentary and local body elections.While the contest is largely centered around the LDF and UDF, several high-profile candidates and politically sensitive constituencies are expected to play a decisive role in shaping the final outcome. From Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan defending the record of the Left regime to Congress leaders trying to make a comeback and BJP leaders trying to convert incremental gains into victories, the results from some key seats could give a clear indication of Kerala’s evolving political landscape.