"The Child Refused Treatment Until He Got the 'Taryag Gang'"

One day, the Taryag Gang set out to walk in the forest. The group, consisting of four children—Tanchum, Robi, Israel, and Gadi—walked among the thick trees when Israel, the adventurer, suddenly discovered a deep, dark pit. "Let's see what's in there," he jumped as if he had found a treasure. But Gadi, the 'talmid chacham' of the group, immediately cried out: "If the pit is empty and has no water, it probably has snakes and scorpions," he quoted wisely the well-known verse from the story of Joseph being thrown into the pit. Robi, who always has the right gear, offered ropes, water, and flashlights. However, before they decided whether to go down into the pit or not, Robi slipped into the large, dark pit.

Before we continue to tell what awaited the group inside the pit, let's get acquainted with the gang taken from the 'audio series' sold to the religious and orthodox community over the past two years. Over these two years, the Taryag Gang has gained incredible momentum, and today the creators boast that they have tens of thousands of subscribers and consumers who purchase the episodes each month.

Simulation of the book 'The Tasks of Taryag Gang 2'

Huge Demand in the Community

The creators are the advertising and media experts Menachem Halpert and Ariel Berman, who manage a content production company called 'Berman-Halpert,' with the stories and plots of Taryag being the responsibility of author and educator Chaim Walder.

(Photo: Ofer Gadenken)

The three decided not to just offer adventure books and comics that are already abundant, but rather to create a series of magazines that include an audio CD—an audio play—and a comic booklet released together once a month. "Our goal," explains Halpert, "is to have an audio disc, so a mother can press play for her children before bedtime or play it for the kids in the car during a drive, and at the same time, there is also a comic booklet that the children can read on Shabbat and holidays when, according to halacha, listening to the disc is prohibited. Of course, each CD and booklet always stops at a suspenseful moment, so the children are always eager for the next in the series."

"The series was born out of a huge need that existed in the community," explains Ariel Berman, who, in addition to producing the series, also lends his voice and directs the actors in the recordings. "Haredi children—like all children around the world—love suspense and adventure stories, but until Taryag Gang was created, this was almost non-existent. And even what did exist was mostly in written literature. In 'Taryag Gang,' the combination of audio plays that are heard, along with comic illustrations that give faces to the voices, definitely create an experience that did not exist before.

"Interestingly, even 'tablet kids' are captivated by it," he adds, "and even children who are exposed to various media and watch series and movies tell us that they are fascinated by the audio plays of Taryag. While it's not very surprising to us, it's certainly very gratifying."

Learning About King Kuknus

For two years, this group has captured the imagination of tens of thousands of children. Yet, a question arises automatically—are we right to sweep children into adventures with gangs? Wouldn't it be better to leave them alone in peace? Why introduce them to bold ideas?

To answer that, we need to tell more of the story of the Taryag Gang that stumbled into the large, dark pit. As you recall, the group was frightened and didn't know where to go. Gadi, the scholar of the group, tried to divert their attention with an intriguing Midrash.

He told his friends that when Moses fled Egypt to Midian, King 'Kuknus' of Cush went to war with another country. When he returned with his soldiers, he found that Balaam the Wicked had raised the city's walls. Later, he dug pits on one side and channeled the city's rivers into those pits to fill them with water, while the other side was filled with venomous snakes. This blocked the king and his soldiers from entering the city.

(Photo: Ofer Gadenken)

Later, King 'Kuknus' died, and the soldiers asked Moses to lead them into the city. Moses instructed every soldier to raise a stork and fatten it, then starve it for several days. When the storks were hungry, the soldiers sent them to the place filled with snakes. The storks devoured all the snakes, so they entered the city, and Moses became king of Cush for forty years.

"After this episode aired, we received a lot of feedback," Halpert shares, "Suddenly we realized how many adults listen to this series too. Many parents contacted us to find out where we got this Midrash that was considered unknown. Of course, we explained the source to everyone and made it clear that our goal is not to bring well-known and simple facts but to innovate, and that's exactly what we're doing."

Walder adds: "'Taryag Gang' is unequivocally an educational series. I believe that anyone who listens to a chapter of Taryag will see the right mix of suspense and stories, between adventures and reality. We never stray from this. Additionally, we have approval from the sanctity and education commission and many recognized and important rabbis. A significant filter has been applied here."

Taryag in the tunnel (illustration: Rotem Hadad Halevi)

"It should also be emphasized," Berman clarifies, "We are a commercial company, and we do this creation as part of our livelihood. However, we are aware of the enormous impact we have on our audience, and it's important for us to incorporate values into the gang's adventures. We aren't educators, but we definitely have an educational responsibility, and for that purpose, we have educators in our system who are responsible for the moral and educational content and make sure the storyline keeps the proper balance and combines suspense, humor, and values in the right measure."

Thousands of Children Waiting

As mentioned, the creators primarily work on the project for their livelihood but at the same time insist that there is a distinct aspect of mission here. "We ensure that the magazines with the CDs are distributed every month in hospital departments," Halpert demonstrates, "and the responses we receive from this are very touching. About a month ago, a father of an oncology child undergoing chemotherapy told us that on the day Taryag arrived, his child managed to endure the treatment without crying thanks to Taryag."

In addition, he mentions that they strive to include 'guest characters' of children in the recordings every month. "There is a waiting list of thousands of children who want to participate, but naturally, we cannot include them all. More than once, we've been approached by educators and therapists asking us to include a specific child in the recording because they understood that it could have an exceptionally positive impact on the child."

(Photo: Ofer Gadenken)

It's interesting that when we ask to speak with the three partners about the product prices, they surprise us by claiming that their goal was to produce an accessible product. Therefore, the price of the Taryag Gang disc together with the booklet is only about 20 shekels.

It's no secret that every successful brand eventually ventures towards the commercial side by launching products featuring the series' characters. Is this a dream for you too?

"Look, we've already released reading books and sticker albums of Taryag," Halpert replies, "but we made sure it wasn't just a random sticker collection, as each page from the album has a task—a sort of puzzle to solve using the stickers—a clearly educational task, of course."

Taryag outside the tunnel (illustration: Rotem Hadad Halevi)

"We also ensured not to create particularly 'valuable' or expensive stickers," Berman remarks. "We ensured an equal amount of each type of sticker was printed and distributed so that children wouldn't have to buy a lot to complete the album. With minimal effort and no significant financial outlay, they can do this."

Might we see Taryag shirts, pencil cases, and backpacks too?

A silence ensues. It's clear we've touched on a sensitive point. "Commercial collaborations definitely exist for us, but only those with added value for children," Halpert says. "For example, just this week a large commercial company approached us again, offering to launch a Taryag Gang chocolate brand. But we declined, not because it's not financially viable—it definitely is—but we really don't want to be in a situation where children ask their parents to buy them chocolate just because it's from Taryag Gang. There is no added value in that but the opposite. Also, regarding branded backpacks, we are hesitant because perhaps if we release Taryag backpacks, some children might ask their parents to buy them even though they don't need them, thus causing unnecessary expenses. But on the other hand—currently, ultra-Orthodox children don't have brands that belong exclusively to them. Perhaps this could be a good alternative if instead of Fireman Sam and Dora, they purchase Taryag Gang. So, we are still not set on it, but what is certain is that even if we do it one day, it will only be with added value, something that truly benefits the children."

To purchase Chaim Walder's Taryag Gang books at Hidabroot shops, click here.