Wang Weili was holding the silicone replica of a woman's bottom in his hand when he turned to the assistant at one of Beijing's cramped sex shops.

"It feels really solid," he asked. "Can you give us a discount?"

The 49-year-old and his wife, Zheng Xiaojie, were not planning a kinky night out but were collecting props for their lecture on AIDS prevention for young blind people, which coincided with the 17th National Day for the Disabled last Sunday.

"We don't just want to serve the blind, we want to solve their real problems and give them equal opportunities," said Wang.

By that, he was referring to equal opportunities to enjoy the arts, gain access to information and socialize.

After recording the lives of the disabled in China for a serial documentary that ran on China's national television network, the couple decided to take a more active role by improving their lives.

This led to the birth of a volunteers' group co-founded by the couple. They named it "Hongdandan" after a wild red flower in China's central regions that is often used as a symbol of hope.

Along with volunteers, they have narrated over 60 movies for more than 1,000 blind people as part of their "Eyes of Heart Cinima" program and hope to produce China's own Peter White - a former blind DJ for the BBC - by schooling talented young Chinese in Mandarin and working on their hosting skills.

They also took a group up the Great Wall and described the setting for them.

"Now that I can enjoy movies and I have learned what the Great Wall really looks like, I feel more like other people," 45-year-old Yang Linshan told China Daily. "I feel reborn."

The couple will soon begin campaigning for a theme park for the blind in Beijing, something they hope is ready for summer 2008. Visitors will be able to touch models of world landmarks with the aid of professional volunteers.

"Narrating movies gives them the eyes to see. Having them touch the models of world landmarks will move them another step closer to the real world," said Wang.