• An
audiobook of
Asterix and the Magic Carpet adapted by
Anthea Bell and narrated by
Willie Rushton was released on
EMI Records'
Listen for Pleasure label in 1988. • This is the first reference to India in an Asterix book. Although some things are depicted in historical fashion (the
Rigvedic deities, for example), many of the architectural details and styles of clothing are distinctly
Islamic, as is the concept of a
fakir.
Islam was not
brought to India until the late 11th century CE. • As in
Asterix in Switzerland and
Asterix and Son, this volume has a rare dramatic overtone by the heroes' need to rescue an innocent from impending death. • Orinjade's name is a play on the soft drink
Orangeade. In the original French version the princess is called Rahàzade. The title of the comic is thus; "Astérix chez Rahàzade" ("Asterix meets Rahàzade"): a
pun on the famous storyteller
Scheherazade who told the 1001
Arabian nights stories. • The gag that Cacofonix's singing induces rain was used for the first time in this album. It later appears in
Asterix and the Secret Weapon. • When Cacofonix sings in Vitalstatistix's hut, it begins to rain indoors (causing an angry
Impedimenta to chase them outside). However, when he first sings in his own hut, it rains all over the village. (This can possibly be explained by Cacofonix sticking his head out a rear window of his hut, although the illustrations do not state this explicitly.) • In the original French version Cacofonix (on page 18) starts singing a song "confused with another comic strip", according to the accompanying text. The song is indeed
Bianca Castafiore's famous "jewels"
aria from
Charles Gounod's
Faust, which she sings often in the Belgian comic strip
The Adventures of Tintin. • On page 23, the princess asks her handmaiden (named "
Lemuhnade" in the English translation) "if she sees anything arriving", while awaiting the Gauls' arrival. This is a reference to the
fairy tale of
Bluebeard where Bluebeard's wife asks the same thing of her sister, while waiting for her brothers to rescue her. • On page 29 Asterix, Obelix and Cacofonix eat
caviar, "just a meal for poor people", according to the cooks. This is a reference to the fact that nowadays only rich people eat it. • When Cacofonix sings in his own hut, after Watziznehm has crash-landed in the village, the song is "
Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" by
B.J. Thomas. • Hoodunnit makes a reference to another Goscinny character,
Iznogoud, as his cousin and borrows his catchphrase by declaring that he will be
Rajah instead of the Rajah. (page 43) • Upon recovering his voice, Cacofonix sings ''
Singin' in the Rain'' by
Arthur Freed and
Nacio Herb Brown. (In the English translation, he instead performs
Feste's Song from
Shakespeare's
Twelfth Night.) • Orinjade is one of the few to express a liking for Cacofonix's music; the others being Justforkix in
Asterix and the Normans and Pepe in
Asterix in Spain. • When Owzat stops Watziznehm from passing, Obelix says "Not out": a reference to the sport of
cricket, wherein bowlers appeal thus to the umpire. Cricket is extremely popular in India. • When Orinjade is taken to be executed, the public call out the countdown, and Asterix and Co. rescue the princess when the count reaches zero; a reference to the development of the
number zero in ancient India. • As Watziznehm is a fakir, his avoidance of all luxury is frequently referred to. At a feast along the way from Gaul to India, Obelix eats a whole camel while Watziznehm is content with a single egg of caviar. • The name Watziznehm may be a reference to the
Salman Rushdie novel
Midnights Children in which the narrators grandmother frequently uses the verbal tick "whatsitsname" in her speech. ==In other languages==