The film remains most memorable for the subtle acting of its leads, plus the handling of the issue of relationships with the visually disabled, revealing the emotional and perception divide between the worlds of the "blind" and the "sighted", epitomized by the characters.
Sparsh refers to the sensation and feeling of touch upon which blind people rely in the absence of sight.
The voice belongs to Kavita Prasad (Shabana Azmi), a young woman recently widowed after three years of marriage.
During the conversation, he mentions that the school is looking for volunteers to read, sing, teach handicrafts and spend time with the children.
(When once, in his office, Kavita attempts to assist him with coffee, he gets enraged at the thought of his guest offering to overcome his obvious difficulty with hospitality.)
Anirudh gets wind of this and assumes Kavita is simply seeking to fill the void in her life with this form of service.
During this time, Anirudh's blind friend Dubey (Om Puri) laments that his recently deceased wife was not happy in their marriage.
The initial coldness between her and Anirudh gives way to friction and eventually, over a series of events at the school, brings up the feelings they were not able to discuss before.