Celebrity Mound

It comes as no surprise that Julia Roberts, famed for her natural beauty, was chosen as the face of cosmetics giant Lancôme.

But despite her trademark smile and clear complexion, it’s hard to believe the 42-year-old hasn’t benefited from a little digital enhancement for the new cosmetics campaign.

The Pretty Woman star is barely recognizable as she advertises the brand’s Definicils mascara, her brown wavy locks dyed blonde for the occasion, looking 15 years younger.

Julia, Lancôme’s first global ambassador for the full line of products, has reportedly signed a deal worth $20 million so it’s likely the company is willing to go to great lengths to ensure their products are flying of the shelves.

The actress has been busy promoting new film Eat, Pray, Love based on the bestselling novel by Elizabeth Gilbert.

Despite the radiant campaign, Julia admitted to being grumpier as she gets older but the mother-of-three claims being woken up by her three children, five-year-old twins Hazel and Phinnaeus and Henry, two, every morning at 5am keeps her feeling young.

Chatting to Oprah Winfrey she said: ‘The older you get, the grumpier you get but Henry woke up the other morning and said, “It’s a beautiful day, Mama.” Which makes 5:30am a whole lot prettier!’

But Julia can rest assured knowing her relatives are following in her footsteps as niece Emma Roberts has been making a name for herself in Hollywood.

The 19-year-old will star in the upcoming Scream sequel and is currently the face of Neutrogena, proving good genes…and clever technology… are the key to beauty.

Julia Roberts is laughing all the way to the bank after becoming the latest face of cosmetics giant Lancome – she’s reportedly been paid $20 million for the deal.

Last month, the Pretty Woman star signed up to become the 2010 “ambassadress” for the beauty firm, following in the footsteps of Isabella Rossellini and Juliette Binoche.

And company bosses were so keen land the beautiful star for the upcoming ad campaign, they forked out a staggering amount to ensure Roberts signed up, according to RadarOnline.com.

The website adds that Roberts jetted off to Paris with husband Danny Moder straight from Sunday’s Golden Globe Awards in Los Angeles to shoot her advertisements.

Young boys climbed trees and villagers crowded rooftops in a tiny dusty village in northern India Sunday to catch a glimpse of Academy Award winner Julia Roberts shooting her new film, “Eat, Pray, Love.”

Scores of policemen, armed with bamboo sticks, private guards and plainclothes security guards kept curious visitors at bay as the “Pretty Woman” star walked about the sets created at Mirzapur village, 65 kilometers (40 miles) south of the Indian capital, New Delhi. Huge black screens protected the sets from television crews and photographers.

Roberts was dressed in a turquoise blue tunic and loose pajamas, the traditional clothes worn by millions of Indian women. In the film, she plays the part of an American woman who leaves behind a troubled marriage and sets out on a journey of self-discovery.

Newspapers and television stations in India have been covering Roberts’ every move since she arrived in India accompanied by her three children nearly 10 days ago.

Security has been tight with about 50 local policemen and security officers guarding the star in the village and in the nearby small town of Pataudi, where Roberts is staying at a former palace converted into a heritage hotel.

The shooting of the film began a few days ago, and started with prayers offered by a Hindu priest.

The Times of India newspaper quoted the priest, Swami Dharam Dev, as saying he had given the names of Hindu gods for her three children.

“I have named her twins Hazel and Phinnaeus as Laxmi and Ganesh, while Henry will be called Krishna Balram,” he was quoted as saying.

The movie, a Brad Pitt production, is directed by Ryan Murphy. It also stars Oscar-winner Javier Bardem, Viola Davis, Richard Jenkins and Billy Crudup.

Indian yogis and Hindu leaders are in a huff over fears that Julia Roberts’ upcoming movie, “Eat, Pray, Love,” will bastardize their religion and portray yoga as a crock of New Age mumbo jumbo.

Roberts is in New York this month filming scenes for the screen version of Elizabeth Gilbert’s best-selling memoir, which details the author’s efforts to find spiritual enlightenment in Italy, India and Indonesia after she’d gone through a nasty divorce.

But shooting is scheduled in India for the third week of September, and has sparked concerns about whether the film will portray Hinduism and yoga authentically.

Most prominent among the skeptics is Rajan Zed, the head of the Universal Society of Hinduism, who’s led Hindu prayers in the US Senate. He said in a recent interview, “Hinduism and its belief system are quite often misunderstood and incorrectly depicted outside India.”

Zed added, “The people of India will be anxious to see how perfectly Roberts does her job of cleaning ashram floors as a part of her devotional duty, trying to recite 182- verse Sanskrit chant, and going through grueling hours of meditation, while being feasted on by mosquitoes.”

Producers have already disclosed that they won’t shoot “Eat, Pray, Love” at the same ashram where Gilbert studied, but instead will use one near Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, which is near the hotel where Roberts will stay.

The book was derided by The Post’s Maureen Callahan in December of 2007 as “narcissistic New Age reading” and “the worst in Western fetishization of Eastern thought and culture, assured in its answers to existential dilemmas that have confounded intellects greater than hers.”

Javier Bardem, James Franco and Billy Crudup are also on board to star. A rep for Sony said the studio had no comment.

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