Meghan Markle’s Friend Janina Gavankar Shares Royal Wedding Secrets

Meghan Markle’s close friend Janina Gavankar shared some new details from her friend’s Royal Wedding to Prince Harry.

The actress spilled the beans on Markle and Harry’s nuptials, including why some of the 600 guests at St. George’s Chapel kept having giggle fits during the ceremony.

In an interview with Town & Country, Gavankar revealed the laughter was due to the cheers from the 1,200 members of the public, who were selected to be outside Windsor Castle for the event for being outstanding members of their community.

“One thing that made many of us giggle was that e could hear the wonderful people outside,” Gavankar said. “When the vows were happening, they would cheer, and we could hear them. It was a very quiet chapel. We all followed the Queen’s lead. But we could hear everyone cheer and it was so heartwarming. Really, it filled out hearts.”

The True Blood alum said she tout she’d feel differently at the event, but the fans outside touched her heart.

“Once I was there, I got to see the people that were on the grounds with us. Sharing that with them was unexpected and heartwarming,” she said. “I really thought that I would be shaken by how public the whole thing was, but I wasn’t.”

Gavankar also said it was important for her to keep her attendance to the ceremony private until she made her entrance at the chapel.

“In the end, this was a wedding, an actual wedding, between two people, who are real people that fell in love. And people who know them know that this is a private moment that was not allowed to be private,” she said. “It wasn’t a priority for me to have my publicist announce I was going. My priority will always be my friend. I’m not there for you, I’m there for her.”

The Vampire Diaries veteran also reflected on the blending of the couple’s different cultures, with Prince Harry being English and Markle being bi-racial.

“As long as it’s going to be public, you might as well make the best of it and show the world what you stand for together, and they did that. Even just in who they chose as musicians. They chose to include parts of both of their cultures,” Gavankar said. “I love that they’re not ignoring that this is an unusual moment in history, and celebrating its sweetness is something that they did.”

The actress also dished on the after party, saying she was “emotionally hungover” after the ultra-exclusive second reception, that only had 200 guests.

“We all danced until the wee hours. We partied and celebrated and ate sliders at 2 in the morning,” Gavankar, who donned a yellow gown for the nighttime event, said. “It was such a beautiful day and a carefree night, and it was a very powerful day in history. And I think everybody felt it across the world.”

As for Harry’s speech? She said, “The speech that Harry gave was so funny, self-deprecating, filled with love, and that guy just has her back. I left feeling so solid for them.” She continued, “I walked away feeling so confident that these two will put their combined power into the world for good. They did it apart. They’ve done it apart their entire lives. Imagine what they can do together.”