Janina Gavankar, one of Meghan Markleâs longtime best friends, was at the live taping for Chris Rock’s blockbuster Netflix show Saturday night â and watched as the comedian skewered the Duchess of Sussex, Page Six can reveal.
The âVampire Diariesâ actress, who has been a staunch defender of Prince Harry’s wife and a close pal of hers for over 20 years, was at Baltimoreâs Hippodrome Theater to witness Rock make history for the streaming serviceâs first live global streaming event.
Sources told Page Six that Gavankar, 42, joined her good friend Dave Chapelle backstage to watch the show in the VIP Green Room.
âJanina looked to be enjoying the show very much, she was standing up by the TV screens and laughing,â one eyewitness told us.
During his set, Rock, 58, mocked the Sussexesâ 2021 Oprah Winfrey interview, where they infamously claimed an unknown royal had raised âconcernsâ about âhow darkâ their baby might be before their son, Archie, was born. The comic joked that Markle was just dealing with some âin-law sât.â
âLike, who is this girl Meghan Markle? Seems like a nice lady â just complaining. Like, didnât she hit the light-skinned lottery?â Rock said to launch into his diatribe, before calling the royal family the âOGs of racism.â
Rock had finely honed his routine over the past few months at a number of gigs around the country, including at Radio City Music Hall in New York City back in October, where he made the same comments about Markle and the royals. Weâre told that Gavankar had been to previous shows, so she knew what to expect.
Gavankar joined a host of big names at Saturdayâs show, including director Spike Lee and wife Tonya Lewis Lee, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, Maryland Governor Wes Moore, author Nelson George, comics Darnell Rollins, Sam Jay and actor Stephen Hill, alongside Arsenio Hall, David Spade and former âSaturday Night Liveâ stars Leslie Jones and Dana Carvey.
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While talking about Markle, Rock put on a high-pitched voice to mock the Duke and Duchess.
âSheâs complaining, Iâm like, âWhat the fâk is she talking about? Theyâre so racist, they wanted to know how brown the baby was going to be,ââ he said.
âIâm like, âThatâs not racist,â causeâ even black people want to know how brown the baby gonâ be. Sât. We check behind them ears.â
Rock also joked that Markle was âacting all dumbâ like she didnât know nothing.
â[She was] going on Oprah [and] saying, âI had no idea how racist they were.â Thatâs the royal family, you didnât Google those motherfâkers? Theyâre the original racists. They invented colonialism,â he said on stage, adding, âThey invested in slavery like it was âShark Tank.ââ
Rock then claimed to know what Markle was âgoing through,â stating, âI know her dilemma: Black girl trying to be accepted by her white in-laws.â
He continued, âOh, itâs hard. Itâs so hard, itâs very hard â but it ainât as hard as a white girl trying to be accepted by her black in-laws. Now that sât is really hard!â
Gavankar was a guest at the Sussexes wedding in May 2018. She also went on British TV after the royal family responded to the Oprah interview by saying “recollections may vary” at the couple’s claims of their hellish time behind palace walls.
Speaking on âThis Morning,â Gavankar hit back at the familyâs claims they werenât aware of the full extent of Meghanâs struggles while she was a working royal family member.
âThough their ârecollections may vary,â ours donât because we lived through it with them,â Gavankar said, quoting directly from the Palace’s statement. âAnd there are many emails and texts to support that.”
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