He played for Mohun Bagan in three spells, East Bengal, Mohammedan and the India national team primarily as a winger, during his 12-year career as a professional footballer.
Ulaganathan was born in 1952 into a Tamilian family in Gautamapura, Austin Town, a locality in Bangalore, of the erstwhile Mysore State (now Karnataka).
Following this he played a striker for another army team, Chief Inspectorate of Electronics (CIL), for three seasons, till 1974.
As a senior professional, he got his first break in 1972, when he was called for the national selection camp in Calcutta (now Kolkata) for the Olympics qualifiers in Rangoon.
Bagan beat Bengal in the semifinals, with Ulaganathan scoring a late winner through a header with three minutes left.
The following season proved to be ordinary for both Ulaganathan and the team, failing to win a single trophy and also losing to Bengal 5–0 in the IFA Shield final.
In his next season, on 24 July 1976, in the game against Bengal, Ulaganathan assisted Mohammad Akbar in scoring a goal in 14 seconds from start.
Sporting beat Mohun Bagan 2–0 in the final, with both goals scored by Jamshid Nassiri, with assists from Ulaganathan.
In the quarterfinal against Malaysia, he injured his shinbone following a collision with a player that made him to sit out of the team for six months.
He resides in Fraser Town, a locality in Bangalore, with his family in his house named "Soccer Ville".