Duchess Meghan‘s close friend Janina Gavankar opened up about the royal wedding and revealed details as to why guests inside St George’s Chapel were giggling during the ceremony.
In an interview with Town & Country just days after the nuptials, the True Blood star, 37, revealed that it was the 1,200 members of the public, who were selected to be on the grounds at Windsor Castle for being outstanding members of their community, who caused some guests to laugh while the pair exchanged vows.
Gavankar admitted that at first she was nervous that the pair wouldn’t have enough privacy during their big day, but was relieved to find how loving the onlookers were. “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. I really thought that I would be shaken by how public the whole thing was, but I wasn’t,” she shared. “One thing that made many of us giggle was that we could hear the wonderful people outside. 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 our hearts.”
The actress said that she initially chose not to make it known that she was attending the wedding out of respect for Prince Harry and the Suits alum, 36. “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.”
She added: “I hope for as much privacy as possible. As much as the world will allow them, I hope for more. Truly.”
The Vampire Diaries alum also said she admired that the royal couple blended their two cultures together on their big day. “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.”
Gavankar gave some insight into the afterparties, too. She previously said she was “emotionally hungover” after the celebrations. “We all danced until the wee hours. We partied and celebrated and ate sliders at 2 in the morning,” she shared. “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 love for Meghan? “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 said. “I walked away feeling so confident that these two will put their combined power into the world for good.”
She continued: “They did it apart. They’ve done it apart their entire lives. Imagine what they can do together.”