The phrase comes from Russian internet slang play, where gav gav is how a dog's bark is written, unlike the English woof woof. Podval simply means basement, and the odd pairing is the whole point. The clip circulated on user soundboards and in short meme edits, shared in Russian and transliterated as gav gav podval for search. It stays popular because it needs no translation to sound funny, works as a random non sequitur, and fits pet videos, gaming clips, and reaction posts.