His poignant lyrics in Taare Zameen Par's song Maa got you teary-eyed, while his soul-stirring dialogues in Rang De Basanti evoked strong feelings of patriotism. After all, lyricist and ad guru Prasoon Joshi has words for every occasion, every emotion. Now, in his latest campaign 'Shuruaat Hoon Main' for the Global Citizen India movement, he encourages Indians to be the change they wish to see. In a chat with Bombay Times, Prasoon tells us why he believes that words can stir a revolution...

What inspired you to write the pledge 'Shuruaat Hoon Main'?
I am aware of the monstrosity of a problem this campaign is trying to counter. When you think about this initiative, there is so much to do. You're trying to address the government, corporates and the psyche of people... so where do you start?

When I went back and forth with my team on this, what struck us is that change can only begin from 'you'. Now the 'you' could be an organisation, an individual or an ideology. Change begins from things that we have control over. And we have control over ourselves. So that's how the idea came. We have to start taking responsibility to solve this problem. 'Shuruaat Hoon Main' are just simple words, but they are a call to action. Right now, our conscience is sleeping. We need to awaken it. Hum logon ke jazbe ko jagah rahe hain.

Do you think words alone can facilitate a change?
I am a huge believer in the power of words. For me, they are Brahma. They have the power to impact our emotions. Take any movement in history and see the influence words have had. Whether it's Rabindranath Tagore's Ekla Chalo Re, or Tum mujhe khoon do, mein tumhe azadi doonga by Subhas Chandra Bose, these are all just words, but see their power. Unfortunately today, there is no simplicity and clarity in what we're saying. Whenever a civilisation throws away the wisdom of the past, this is what happens. We are losing seriousness of whatever we're trying to convey to people. We have come down to the level of street fighting and goonda raj. I believe in a civilised society where we can try to convince each other with words.

You write for films as well as social campaigns. Do you approach these differently?
No. Whether it is films, ads or campaigns, I'm always trying to communicate a thought. Even when I was writing Bhaag Milkha Bhaag or Rang De Basanti, I wanted to give a message. It's just that the canvas of films is larger. But writing is all about trying to connect with people. My aim is to not lose gravitas and clarity while writing.