In a cricket-crazy nation, Bengaluru has bred several prominent football stars, who have played a significant role in shaping the sport for India. Two areas that share the crown are Austin Town and Gowthampura .

Narayanaswami Ulaganathan from Gowthampura , also known as little Brazil, holds the record for scoring the first hat-trick in the Durand Cup while representing Mohun Bagan.

Recollecting how his passion started for football, Mr. Ulaganathan said, “Poongam Kannan, Sattar Basheer, Ambrose would complete their league in Kolkata and come to play in Gowthampura , and we would also practise with them.”

Mr. Ulaganathan’s journey started with Bangalore Mars Football Club. After joining the CIL, he started playing with the likes of Krishnaji Rao, Noor and Amjad Khan. “In 1972, I played for India at the Olympics qualifiers in Burma. Next year, I played the Merdeka tournament in Malaysia, after which in 1974, I got an offer from Mohun Bagan, where I played for three years. After that, I played for East Bengal for three years,” Mr. Ulaganathan said.

He also played for Mohammedan Sporting FC for a year.

He represented India at the 1974 Asian games in Iran and the Kings Cup in South Korea. He hung up his boots in 1985. He has also won two awards from the West Bengal government - ‘Banga Ratna’ and ‘Banglar Gaurav’. Currently, he is the brand ambassador for the Karnataka Football Association.

C. Ravi Kumar, another footballer from Austin Town, played for the Indian team in over 25 international appearances. He made a mark as a striker for the various football clubs that he represented. Starting his journey at the Bangalore mars club, he played for teams like CIL, BEL and ITI.

Mr. Kumar also represented the country five times from 1983 to 1987 and played 10 times in the Santosh trophy.

“After playing for Mohun Bagan, I came back and settled in Bengaluru,” Mr. Kumar said.  Elaborating on how the game has changed over the years, Mr. Kumar said, “Today, whatever the manager or coach says, players have to follow. Those days, talent was important. Players could follow their technique.”

R. Mohan, ex vice-president of Bangalore District Football Association, another player from Austin Town, represented Mohammedan Sporting Club. His father, T.L. Ramaswamy, represented Karnataka and played for Kalighat club in 1936. Mr. Mohan started his journey in 1969 at the Regional Coaching Camp in Bengaluru. In 1973, he joined the Railways team.

“In 1975, I represented the junior national team for Karnataka in Manipur, where we lost in the semifinals to Bengal. I shifted to Kolkata, where I played for Mohammedan Sporting Club in 1977,” he said.

Mr. Mohan said that Syed Naeemuddin, who captained the Indian football team, taught him the basics of the game. He then returned to Bengaluru and played for several local clubs, including HAL football club, where he played for 15 years.

Noel Anthony William, another footballer from Austin Town who represented India between 1998 and 2002, graduated from Tata Football Academy. “In our times, we didn’t have age group tournaments. We used to play open tournaments like the Durand Cup.”

With the introduction of Indian Super League in India, Mr. William said with comfort coming in, players should not get relaxed. “With facilities like nutrition, dietician and health and conditioning coach, players should make use of them and perform well for the national team. But they are not playing in the national team because they are getting better money in clubs. A player who plays for the national team should be paid more,” Mr. William added.