Aouda (औद / ''Auda''), a character in '' Around the World in Eighty Days'' by Jules Verne, is an Indian princess accompanied by

Phileas Fogg Phileas Fogg () is the protagonist in the 1872 Jules Verne novel ''Around the World in Eighty Days''. Inspirations for the character were the American entrepreneur George Francis Train and American writer and adventurer William Perry Fogg. ...

and Passepartout. The daughter of a Bombay Parsi merchant, she was married against her will to the old

raja ''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested ...

of Bundelkhand. At the death of her husband, she is about to be sacrificed by her husband's relatives and other people of their society as a sati at her husband's funeral pyre. Upon learning the circumstances of the sati and how this is all against Aouda's will, Fogg and company intervene and rescue her. At first, Fogg attempts simply to deliver her to relatives along the way on his trip. However, when that proves impossible, she is their permanent companion who becomes more and more attracted to the intriguing and noble Fogg as she shares in the adventures. When they finally reach Britain and appear to have arrived too late to meet the deadline, Aouda fears that she ruined Fogg by causing him delays in his journey, although he firmly denies she was a problem. Now in love with the gentleman and also wishing to help him in his impoverishment, Aouda proposes to Fogg, and he joyously accepts. As it turns out, this gesture by Aouda saves the day for them all for it prompts Passepartout to discover that by traveling east, they inadvertently arrived in London a day early and now have just enough time to sprint to the Reform Club to win the wager. The company set off for the club and arrive just in time. Afterward, Aouda offers to end the engagement since the original motivation has been removed. However, Fogg, deeply in love and grateful for all Aouda is and has done for him, will not hear of it and they are happily married with Passepartout having the honor of giving her away at the wedding.

Adaptations

In the novel, Aouda changes out of her traditional

sari A sari (sometimes also saree or shari)The name of the garment in various regional languages include: * as, শাৰী, xārī, translit-std=ISO * bn, শাড়ি, śāṛi, translit-std=ISO * gu, સાડી, sāḍī, translit-std ...

for a typical European dress provided by Fogg. However, to emphasise the concept of the character as an Indian princess, most adaptations have her keeping her sari at least until the company completes the challenge. In addition, modern adaptations establish that she accompanies Fogg and Passepartout in the final sprint to the Reform Club when it is discovered there is still time to win the wager. The popular Spanish-Japanese animated adaptation, '' Around the World with Willy Fog'', compromises on this detail by having Fog invite Aouda, here named "Romy", to change out of the dark-coloured funeral sari she was forced to wear for her sati and into a lighter-coloured one which she wears for remainder of the voyage. In the sequel series, ''Willy Fog 2'', Romy eventually dons a European dress that mirrors her old dress' color-scheme although she keeps her

Tilaka In Dharmic culture, the ''tilaka'' ( sa, तिलक) () is a mark worn usually on the forehead, at the point of the Ajna chakra, or sometimes another part of the body such as the neck, hand, chest or arm. ''Tilaka'' may be worn daily or for ...

mark.

Casting

Aouda was played by: * Shirley MacLaine in the 1956 film adaptation of ''Around the World in Eighty Days'' *Arlene McQuade in the "Have Gun, Will Travel" episode "Fogg Bound" *

Julia Nickson Julia Nickson is a Singaporean–American actress. She first came to the attention of audiences in the United States in the Sylvester Stallone film '' Rambo: First Blood Part II''. She appeared in the 2004 film '' Ethan Mao'' and in the 2008 in ...

in the 1989 three-part TV mini-series. * Shivaani Ghai in the 2021 series. *In the 2004 Disney live action film, Aouda is replaced by Monique La Roche, a French would-be

impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passag ...

(played by

Cécile de France Cécile de France (; born 17 July 1975) is a Belgian actress. After achieving success in French cinema hits such as '' L'Art (délicat) de la séduction'' (2001) and ''Irène'' (2002), she gained international attention for her lead roles in '' ...

References

{{Around the World in 80 Days Around the World in Eighty Days characters Female characters in literature Literary characters introduced in 1873 Fictional Indian people Fictional princesses